Ciel in Wonderland
by Seiraa
Summary: While at his studies, Ciel takes an impromptu trip down the rabbit's hole and finds himself trapped in the crazy, sickly sweet, peculiar world of Wonderland. However, not everything goes according to the story.
1. This Place, Strange

**Author's Note: **I was surprised when I looked through the Kuroshitsuji archive and saw that no one had actually written the complete fanfiction of _Ciel in Wonderland_. After seeing all the fanart and even one or two doujinshi of the parody, I believed there were probably ten or more different written versions of it. For now I'm unaware of any fanfiction on this site that is a Kuroshitsuji-Wonderland parody, and from what I know of this is the first _Ciel in Wonderland_ fic on the site.

**Disclaimer:** _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland _is property of Lewis Carroll. The original idea and concept of _'Ciel in Wonderland'_ and the series Kuroshitsuji belong to Yana Toboso.

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"William Shakespeare, born in 1564, was an English playwright. His plays were predominantly written in blank verse. He constructed comedies, though most of his work was enigmatic, historical-themed productions and tragedies. Many of his plays were influenced by Greek and Roman culture, such as _Julius Caesar _and _Timon of Athens_. He wrote more than one-hundred fifty− Young Master?"

Sebastian shifted his eyes towards said master. Said master's eyes were drooping, and his cheek was propped against his palm.

"Young Master."

Having been roused from his almost-sleep, Ciel's eyes widened ever-so-slightly, and he glanced at Sebastian, almost as if to say, "I'm awake!"

"Please attempt to concentrate on the lesson, Young Master." Sebastian tried, frowning to show his disapproval. "It will do your education ill if you fall asleep as the teacher teaches."

The boy waved his hand nonchalantly, "Continue with the lesson; I'm listening."

"As you wish." There was a certain smile in his teacher's voice. "William Shakespeare also wrote more than one-hundred fifty sonnets −which are, as you know, a poem consisting of fourteen lines and ten syllables that use rhyme schemes− that were published in− Young Master?"

Ciel was dozing off again. His head nodded to the side faintly, and his small chest heaved gently, subtly, almost as final proof that he was asleep. Or at least, he was drifting off down that road...

There was a sigh as Sebastian tinkered around with his pointer. "Young Master... Honestly. How on earth does he expect to learn anything in his condition? He had insisted on spending additional time playing cards and chess late last night and now he's falling asleep during the lesson."

The male reached over the desk with his pointer, positioning its tip so that it raised the boy's chin upwards. Immediately, Ciel's eyes snapped open by the sudden contact of cold metal, and he glowered at his makeshift tutor fiercely.

"Young Master, if you continuously ignore the lesson, you are going to fall even further behind schedule than you already are−"

"I'm just a little tired; I'll be fine. Continue with the lesson," the midnight-haired boy grumbled, pushing the menacing silver of the pointer's tip away. He propped his elbows onto the table, netting his fingers before placing his chin on them.

"Are you to listen this time around?" His tutor smirked at him deviously, messing absently with the pointer in his hands. It wasn't as if Sebastian didn't already know that Ciel was going to be snoozing during the next segment of their lesson, but it was only for the bitter look that Ciel gave him that he even bothered to ask the question.

Ciel straightened his back, blinked and _looked_ as if he were actually paying attention. He picked up his pen, ready to take notes on the words that Sebastian spilled from his lips. And, as if to add even more focus, he _looked_ at Sebastian's face. He stared at the temporary spectacles his tutor wore, immersed in their glow and the reflection of Sebastian scarlet eyes from behind them.

In no time, that was the _only_ thing he was focused on. It was the only thing that he could stare at that would keep him from falling asleep. Even so, he had unknowingly tuned Sebastian's voice out, so actually _listening_ to the lesson was useless.

His eyelids were heavy, but he wasn't going to give way to sleep. At least, not consciously, no. However, Ciel Phantomhive, though he didn't seem to know until it was too late, had gone into a trance. He had fallen asleep with his eyes open, distracted by the unmoving glow on his tutor's spectacles.

Even after all that, Ciel was sure that he was awake. No, he was absolutely _positive_ that he was awake. And because he was so sure of himself and so confident, he was appalled when it looked as if two white rabbit ears protruded from Sebastian's head.

He blinked rapidly, trying to confirm his suspicion of the body part taking over his butler's head, but, to his fear, it didn't disappear. Did Sebastian not _feel_ them? Or was he playing some kind of game with him?

Sebastian twitched all of a sudden, and he reached into his coat, pulling out his pocketwatch. "Hmm... if I continue on like this I'll be late."

_Late for what?_

Without another word, Sebastian turned around, opened the study's door and left. When the door closed, it disappeared, right along with the butler.

And at that moment, Ciel noticed that he wasn't at his desk in his study anymore. He found himself in a vast, bright green field in the middle of... he had no idea where. There was nothing in sight, just miles upon miles of blowing grass. And upon looking down at himself, he noticed his burgundy jacket-and-pants suit had been replaced with a pale bluish costume and the strangest black and white striped stockings he had ever seen. His high-heeled boots had also been replaced with black, smaller-heeled shoes. And a glossy black bow, wound delicately in his hair, completed the look.

"Sebastian? Sebastian?" he looked around frantically for his tutor, and at the same time tried to calm down and think rationally. By a stroke of luck, he was just in time to see Sebastian crawl down a large rabbit-hole concealed under a hedge.

In a flash, Ciel had followed Sebastian to the rabbit-hole and was contemplating if he should pursue any further.

"What if Sebastian_ isn't_ down there...?"

He peered into the outstretched darkness. And of course he had no fear of the darkness, per se, but the rabbit-hole looked small. And if he were to go in, how would he get back out? He knew nothing about this field, or what was down the rabbit-hole. He didn't even know what was going on.

Even if he didn't understand what was going on... (He placed a hand over his eyepatch-covered eye.) he and Sebastian had made a contract, and from what he knew of, their deal was still in play, even in this crazy-looking field and what lay beyond it. Sebastian would (more like, _should_) be there to protect him no matter what danger was down there.

Sucking in his breath, he decided to take a chance. Without a second thought, Ciel had heaved himself down into the darkness as well.

_Sebastian. You better be sure about this._

The dark rabbit-hole went straight down like a tunnel. It made Ciel's stomach churn furiously as he plummeted, and he was absolutely positive (well, _almost_ absolutely positive) he was going to crash onto the ground and die from a fall that was from what seemed like an immense height.

However, he suddenly dipped, and it felt as if the rabbit-hole was either very deep or he was falling very slowly. All the while he was looking right and left at the strange wallpaper on the walls, trying to find the fluffy white of Sebastian's bunny ears that had traveled down before him.

When he looked up, he saw the small circle of light from the world above become smaller and smaller, allowing the darkness to choke him. When he looked to the right, there was a magenta-striped wall, covered with framed-pictures of faces he'd never seen. Or they could have been faces he _had_ seen around England but had never given a second glance or thought to. There were also cupboards filled with anything _but_ cups, and book shelves filled with _only_ books. And then, there were maps of countries and oceans he had never heard of (for example, where was DoDosBurg?) that were half unrolled and thrown every which way.

The left wall was the same. But when he looked down, there was nothing but black.

He had just begun to tire of falling into nothingness and seeing nothing of interest until he felt his feet (and his rear) meet a pile of thick, prickly sticks and leaves. Wincing, Ciel again took to his feet, and to his slight reassurance, he saw Sebastian in the distance, _hopping_. Sebastian was _hopping_ down another tunnel, gazing at his pocketwatch and murmuring things Ciel couldn't comprehend.

"Sebastian? Wait! Sebastian!" He rushed after the figure, irritated that his butler refused to answer his calls.

The butler disappeared behind a wall, but as soon as Ciel turned the corner, Sebastian was no where to be seen.

He was met with a long, long, _long_, musty and low-ceilinged hallway. Over the ridiculous stretch of the hallway, there were doors, _everywhere_. Through common sense, he tried the first few doors, but he frowned and gave up, seeing that they were locked. He walked down the hallways, cursing to himself and trying every door that seemed 'suspicious' enough. It was no use, however; they were all locked.

At one end of the hallway, a three-legged table came into view. As he ran closer towards it, he saw that it was made completely of shining glass. Atop the little table, the only thing there was a tiny golden key.

_Just one._

Ciel scowled, his nerves grating further. That key could open _any_ door here! But there was just _one_.

And so, he went through with the tedious, taxing job of checking each and every door with that little key. But in the end, unfortunately, each lock was either too large (or the key was too small) to fit at all.

"I guess I should try again," he grumbled, turning the small key around in his equally small hands. He disliked the idea of wasting more time for something that might not even work, but it was worth a try. During the second time around, he noticed something he hadn't before. Near the end of the long hallways was a low, blood-wine-colored curtain.

Pulling the curtains apart, he felt his heart flutter a bit when another door came into view. It was only about fifteen inches (38.1 cm) high, but if it was such a small door the small golden key might work for it. With bated breath, he pushed the key into the door, and it fit.

Positive that he'd see Sebastian behind it, Ciel eagerly wrenched open the door, to find that the small door led into an even smaller passage. And that even smaller passage led into a cheery-looking garden. It reminded him of the garden at the old Phantomhive mansion. The old mansion where he and his family were always laughing. The old mansion where he had unwillingly been torn away from his smiles.

"How did Sebastian fit through here?"

With a sigh, he was about ready to give up and leave the long hallway, but when he stood up and went back to the table, he saw a dull-colored bottle on the table.

"This wasn't here before..." Ciel mused, removing a string from the apron pocket that was over his clothing and looping the small, golden key around it, lest he may need it later.

His blue eye espied the words '_Drink Me'_ beautifully printed in large black letters on a paper label around the bottle's neck.

He turned around, almost worried as if someone was watching him, before picking up the bottle to read the label a bit more closely. No other words were printed on the label, so he popped the cork and dipped the drink into his mouth− before coughing and twisting his face into a look of disgust.

The drink tasted horrible: a mixed flavor of cherry-tart, custard, pineapple, roast turkey, toffee, and hot buttered toast. But something in his head told him to finish it, for it might benefit him in his situation. So, with a scowl, he drank the rest of the bottle. All until the very last drop.

Before he could blink, he was now only ten inches high (25.4 cm). He glanced up at the looming doorknob, and, feeling a stab of pride for thinking ahead, he readied the key to open the door. However, once he saw the key, he was shocked by how large it was in comparison to his petite form.

"Damn."

He turned back to the table as if to look to it for help. Near one of the glistening table legs, there was a small box also made of glass. Once he picked it up and opened it, he was met with a very delectable cake inside, bearing the delicately written words _'Eat Me'_.

Though it was impolite to use one's fingers when eating particularly messy foods ("Though it's not as if I have any utensils to use.") Ciel swiped the pink icing off of the cake with his index finger and tasted it.

The taste was much better than that of the drink, but no where near as delicious as the desserts Sebastian made for him. The thought of Sebastian rekindled his waning determination to enter the garden, so he lifted the little cake and bit into a _tiny_ piece of it.

Nothing happened− for which Ciel felt very stupid for.

And, feeling irritated, he took another bite of the cake, this bite only a bit bigger by a trifle. Nevertheless, that small bite made him grow immensely. By the time he looked down at the ground, he had decided that he had grown a foot taller than his normal human height.

"I can't get through the door being this big..." He took up the key from his neck, making sure to open the door this time, and shoved his head and shoulders through. However, once he reached behind himself for the bottle to shrink again, he remembered that he had drank the bottle to the very last drop.

With a frown, he sank to his knees, then further down onto his shins and thighs, head hung. And before he could properly shame himself for his "stupidity", he heard a familiar "Ho... Ho... Ho" from above.

"Tanaka?"

At once he glanced up to see Tanaka's head as the doorknob. The old man reached out with his steaming mug of tea and doused Ciel with the liquid.

"Tanaka? What are you−" between coughs and sputters, Ciel flailed his arms, trying to get away from the tea-shower, but to no avail. The tea cup seemed to be filled with an endless supply of tea, and as soon as Ciel's eyes snapped open, he noticed that he had been carried away with the tea, through the small door and into the garden.

When he glanced around (still drifting away with the tea) he saw Tanaka waving at him, while laughing, tea mug in the other hand.


	2. This Place, Wondrous

**Thank You: **I've received reviews and a lot of faves and alerts for just the first chapter! Thank you all so much! I will work hard to continue to write a story that you hopefully will enjoy.

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Ciel watched as the little door drifted farther and farther away and everything became smaller and more distant to him. He was fortunate that Tanaka's tea (contrary to the smoke that usually rose from it) wasn't scalding hot against him. By that time, it was up to his chin.

He drifting lazily, heaving as he looked for some stretch of land to go to. As he gazed above the waves, something gray came into view.

"A mouse?"

Swimming in a series of sloppy dog paddles (which was undoubtedly strange because some dogs actually eat mice...) was a tiny gray mouse. Its twiggy legs and arms scraped through the waves frantically, and the creature struggled to keep its head above the surface.

Through Ciel's peripheral vision, an array of colorful feathers also came into view. Once he turned to inspect one creature, his eye was met with dozens more. The feathers belonged to a mass of dodos and lories, ducks and eaglets, all sorts of creatures with draggled wings and fur (the mouse), forced to bathe in lukewarm tea. Each one was looking for a way to get dry.

At long last, Ciel felt he was immobile, and he saw he had finally reached the shore. He watched as two by two, creatures of each kind clambered out of the tepid 'waters', dribbling with persistent tea droplets that clung to their bodies.

Blinking, Ciel was thoroughly confused.

"Dodos... are supposed to be extinct."

But before he could continue speaking, one of the lories among the group rose its beak to the sky and gave him a sharp nudge in the back. "How do _you_ suppose we get dry?" With a glare, Ciel only had time to open his mouth before the mouse ran over towards him and interrupted.

"I say we all sit in a circle. I shall tell you all the driest tale I know."

"'_Tell'_? This isn't a matter of verbality," Ciel was able to add as he glared intently at the mouse. "It's a physical matter." (Then he gasped and clasped a hand against his mouth. Animals were talking to him (and he was talking back!). This place was getting stranger and stranger.)

"Well, then, how do _you_ suppose we get dry, my dear?" the mouse asked, quite politely actually. And just as before, Ciel was interrupted, this time by another, oversized bird. Another defy-the-laws-of-extinction dodo bird.

"I propose a caucus-race!" it said, lifting a feathered wing proudly. And almost at once, everyone began to nod and agree to the idea, chattering and praising the dodo for its extensive knowledge.

Ciel, however, was mentally left in the dust. If he was at home, Sebastian would have already brought a towel round and he would be dry in a trice. That reminded him that he still had yet to find and question Sebastian.

"And what _is_ a caucus-race?"

A nearby duck giggled at Ciel's expense, but when Ciel flashed it a look, it simply said, "The best way to explain it is to do it!" Ciel was pushed over towards a race-course marked in what looked like white chalk. Then, after ordering Ciel to stand there, all the other animals were placed along the course as well.

_Guessing by the way they've marked things off, it's a race... _

As Ciel waited for the instructions to what he now knew was a 'race', he was caught off-guard when some animals started running while others sat stock-still. A pair of rather pushy eaglets shoved Ciel this way and that as if they themselves were in a mutual competition. Even the mouse jogged around the track, huffing and puffing. When he reached Ciel, it stopped running and turned to him.

"Whadda ya doing? Don't ya wanna get dry? Then run! That's what the caucus-race is for!" And it took off once again, huffing and puffing though anyone could outrun it without any effort or exhaustion needed. In fact, anyone could out_walk_ the little mouse if they wanted to.

Ciel Phantomhive wasn't the type to stoop as low as to _purposely_ looking like an imbecile (at least, not without benefit), but he saw that these caucus-race-running animals were indeed getting dry. He on the other hand was shivering and sopping wet. His asthma-related coughs were going to start up if he didn't get dry. So, only slightly pushing his pride and prestigious image to the back of his mind, he began running as well.

"What'sa matter?" the mouse asked, looking up at Ciel after catching up with him. Maybe it was imagining things, but the only human around looked quite peeved.

"I feel like an idiot running in circles with a bunch of newfangled animals..." he growled, his teeth grit. The mouse leapt to reply to the boy, but this time _it_ was interrupted by a dodo. The "genius" that had initially decided to hold the caucus-race.

"The race is over! Everybody has won and all must have prizes!"

With jubilant cheers, everyone (save for a particular blue-eyed boy) jumped for joy. All was well, and everyone was mostly dry. That was, until that damned duck began speaking again. (Ciel decided he hated ducks once it began to speak.)

"But who is to give the prizes?" an eaglet tilted its head.

The duck placed a wing under its beak as if it were in deep thought. This didn't last long enough, however, and it instantly pointed towards a surprised Ciel. "She is!"

All the animals turned to Ciel as if expecting him to obey and empty his apron pockets of whatever was inside. Of course, he didn't. (He was still a bit shocked at being thought of as a 'she' all this time.) The animals crowed and sang, "Prizes! Prizes!"

"What prizes have you to give us?" a magpie asked.

"Yes, yes! What?" a canary, loon, and heron questioned, coming closer to Ciel eagerly.

He backed away, however, shaking his head. "I have nothing to give you."

There was a gasp and then an interval of silence.

"Oh, you must have something?" pleaded a baby mamo ('_That should also be extinct_', Ciel thought with a roll of his eye.) But then he felt a presence near him that cut his sarcastic train of thought in two.

"What about this?" a lory called, pecking at his eye patch.

"Or this?" questioned one of the two pushy eaglets, pulling on his golden ring.

"Or this?" asked the other (seemingly pushier) eaglet, trying to wrench the sapphire-colored heirloom ring from his thumb. Soon, all of the birds were in on the act of shoving and tugging on Ciel, trying to remove his valuable accessories and call them prizes. Some of the magpie and canary were even cheering, yelling, and chirping loudly and violently as if the event was some kind of competitive sport.

Well, they _were_ cheering, yelling, and chirping until Ciel was able to escape from the mass of feathers and beaks, having slapped the leader of the "prize assault".

"Don't touch me!"

All the birds backed up, overly scared by the sudden outburst of anger. The babies and children crowded closer to their parents or the older birds among them, while the adults pulled children that weren't even theirs closer and under their wings, lest Ciel decided to burst into a rampant bird-slapping fest.

And then, without warning, he turned and ran off. Where he was going he had no idea, and what was ahead he didn't know. It was better than being caught under masses of bird wings, being suffocated and losing his breath and sight. So he ran, unbeknownst that something of his was missing.

"W-Well, she wasn't important anyway!" one of the pushy eaglets cried, fighting to stop its quivering and keep the fear from entering its voice. Gathered together in a circle, all of the birds sighed heavily (as did the mouse). However, even though Ciel was gone, that didn't mean that the animals didn't receive _a_ prize.

"Look there!" a lory pointed its bright feathers towards the ground. And there, sure enough, sitting atop the dirt was the blue Phantomhive ring, gleaming in the tiny amount of sunlight it received.


	3. This Place, A Familiar Face

By the time Ciel entered the buttercup garden he was out of breath. He fell to his knees, panting, his cheeks burning red from exhaustion. After mostly catching his breath, he glanced upwards, noticing the garden he was now in. It wasn't the same one he had seen when peering through the little door after falling down the rabbit's hole; this one was filled with mostly buttercups, daisies, and mushrooms. As soon as he noticed the flowers, he was reminded that he still wasn't his normal human height.

"I wonder if there's something here that can make me taller..." he mused, pushing his way through the oversized blades of grass. He searched his way through the emerald turf, ducking low from looming flowers (which otherwise would have been normal sized if he was his human height), taking dainty steps through the patted-down dirt. The smell of buttercups made him feel more and more relieved, and the small amount of color began returning to his face.

His aim was the largest mushroom in the middle of the garden. If he could eat some of the mushroom he might grow. It seemed that in this world, when you drank you shrank and when you ate you grew. However, once he got to the mushroom and stood next to it, he began rethinking his original plan.

_Everything_ around was bigger than him. Even the mushroom was a few inches taller than him. What if instead of helping him grow, he shrank even more? Then he would be so small no one could see him and he would never find Sebastian! Even if he managed to _find_ Sebastian, that didn't mean he'd be able to get his attention. Also, what if the mushroom was poisonous? Ciel Phantomhive wasn't perfect at deciphering the taste of vegetables like he was at tea. Never mind taste, he wasn't even aware of what most poisonous mushrooms _looked_ like. (Actually, the only ones he even knew of were death caps and toadstools...)

Gazing towards the mushroom now, it didn't even _look_ like a mushroom; it looked more like a muffin. Ciel began wondering if the mushroom actually _was_ a muffin, and that it might actually _taste_ like a muffin, too. And if it _did_ taste like a muffin, he wondered what kind of muffin it would taste like. Then he began wondering that if he ate something sweet (such as a muffin) he would grow, but if he ate something sour or bitter (such as certain types of mushrooms) he would shrink. _Then_ he began to wonder that if he _were_ to eat the sweet muffin-mushroom how would it taste? It most likely wouldn't taste too bad, according to how delectable the cake he nibbled on earlier was, but he still had yet to taste pastries as sweet as Sebastian's.

But _then_, he began to doubt that the muffin standing before him even _was_ a muffin. Muffins didn't grow from the ground, and they usually didn't have stalks coming from their ends. But on the other hand, so far, all things in W o n d e r l a n d were crazy. Extinct birds were flying around; food made you grow and shrink; and everything he had met and talked to so far was an animal. He was surprised he even spoke the same language as all of those creatures. Sighing, Ciel decided he disliked thinking of those brainless animals. He'd rather _think_ of muffins. And from there, his original train-of-thought picked up again: He began wondering exactly what _kind_ of muffin he'd like to think of.

There were poppyseed muffins, apple muffins, strawberry muffins, English muffins (which weren't actually muffins at all) blueberry muffins, bran muffins, pumpkin muffins, oat muffins, nut muffins, banana muffins, and cinnamon muffins, among other kinds...

Then, he was surprised to know that the muffin-mushroom in front of him might have been a mushroom-flavored muffin. _Or_ even a muffin-flavored mushroom.

Why not?

There was such thing as a mushroom-cheese muffin, so why not a mushroom-flavored muffin? He preferred eating a muffin-flavored mushroom, however. It would be far more delicious and stomachable than a mushroom-flavored muffin. But on the other hand, he didn't mind eating mushrooms. So a mushroom-flavored muffin might not have been that bad. It would have been peculiar but not _that_ bad.

That's when the logical side of Ciel's brain cut him off. He was thinking so many things at once! It was this world; he blamed it for causing him to temporarily go crazy—

"Who... are... _you_?"

That familiar voice snapped Ciel out of his fantasy of muffins, and he slowly turned towards the top of the mushroom (or muffin, whichever), and got a good look at a supposed 'caterpillar'. It sat cross-armed, smoking quietly from its opium pipe.

"Lau?"

This time the caterpillar ignored Ciel. In fact, it didn't even seem to notice anything around it for a moment.

Ciel, on the other hand, was secretly (and he would _never_ admit it) delighted to see the face of someone he knew (Tanaka and Sebastian excluded). But he was slightly taken aback after he noticed Lau had greeted him with a 'who are you?' instead of a 'hello, Earl,' as he usually did.

Puffing loudly, Lau nodded his head towards Ciel. "To which 'lau' are you referring to? The native inhabitants of the Solomon Islands? Or maybe the Mandarin surname? And if you are talking about the number six, what particularly are you trying to say?"

Ciel didn't know _what_ to say. What did one say to caterpillars anyway? He decided Lau was playing a game on him and he was stupid to have been taken by surprise.

"Lau, what are you doing here? Do you know any way out−"

"Who-o-o are you?" Lau drawled, blowing hoarsely whilst saying 'who'.

"'Who am I?' Stop speaking nonsense!" Ciel growled, clenching and unclenching his fists. He waited for Lau to continue, but the caterpillar simply sat on the mushroom-muffin, puffing through the opium pipe and blowing smoke into the air. "Don't you know me?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because."

Ciel growled, smacking his forehead in frustration. Biting his lip, he turned to the side and grumbled lowly, "You _should_ know me..."

"You? Who are you?"

The boy tilted his head back, exhaling loudly, "_I_ don't even know anymore."

"What do you mean?"

Ciel blinked at him, unsure of how to explain. He seemed out of place. He was short one moment, then he was tall, then short again. He hardly felt like himself with all of the height changes and switches, and he wasn't even sure how to go about explaining who he thought he was (or, who he thought he should be) anymore.

Without anything else to do, he decided to play along with the dumb game. He simply ignored the previous question and snapped, "Fine. Tell me who _you_ are, then."

Lau smirked, "Why?"

"Because I want to know. If you're not Lau, then '_who are you_'?" Ciel mimicked. He already felt tired of trying to explain his situation, and this caterpillar was making things harder on him. He turned to Lau again, narrowing his eyes. "Well...?" he prompted.

"What are we talking about?"

Stomping his foot and growling, an irate Ciel stomped off, having given up on the caterpillar. It wasn't much like him to lose his temper around Lau, but he was getting no where with this conversation. It was like talking to a brick wall. A smoking, curt-answer-giving brick wall.

When he wasn't even ten feet away from the mushroom-muffin, Lau called out to him, saying,

"Wait! I have something important to tell you!"

Ciel paused, slowly turning and wondering to himself if this was some kind of stupid trick, or a continuation of their asinine game. Then again, Lau, even in caterpillar-form, shouldn't be the kind to lie to him. Annoy the hell out of him, yes, but never actually _lie_ to him. He now began questioning Lau's loyalty.

In spite of himself, Ciel turned around, wandering through the grass once more back to the mushroom-muffin Lau had commandeered. When he came into sight, he looked up at Lau from a distance, tapping a foot.

Lau took a puff, "Keep your temper."

"... Is that all?" Ciel groused, teeth grit, literally tight-lipped.

"... No. Have you ever heard of a saddleback caterpillar?"

Again Ciel was caught off-guard. He blinked twice, momentarily perplexed. "No."

"It really is a dangerous creature," Lau drawled, puffing and looking perfectly relaxed. His image was in direct contrast to Ciel's, who was near the mushroom, tapping his foot a bit faster, arms crossed.

"What does that have to do with−"

"It belongs to a family of slug caterpillars. They are green and brown at either end with a white-ringed, brown dot in the middle of their bodies." He took a breath to puff out more smoke, this time directly into Ciel's face. Whether it was on purpose or Ciel had just been in the way of the smoke was unknown.

Coughing and swiping at the air irritatedly, Ciel narrowed his eyes through the haze, trying to keep his eyes fixed on Lau. "Did you call me back here just to —cough cough— speak of —cough cough—caterpillars?"

"No."

"Then what did you want to say?"

"Do you know why these caterpillars are so dangerous?" he quickly glanced at Ciel, whom was gritting his teeth.

"I haven't the slightest."

Lau inhaled nearly six more puffs before placing the pipe to his side. His eyes opened slowly to survey Ciel closely. It was rare for Lau to open his eyes. If he did, it usually meant trouble, or something along that line.

"They're poisonous."

"... Hm?"

"They secrete venom through the hairs on their bodies."

"Lau... what are you getting at−?"

"There's a saddleback caterpillar on your leg."

Lau's curt reply had been said so nonchalantly and flippant that Ciel actually had to double-take, then _triple_-take to ensure that he had heard Lau correctly. Turning slightly pale, he glanced downwards to see if what Lau said was true. And, sure enough, the heinous green, brown, and white creature was crawling across the striped stocking on his right leg. It was about up to his thigh now (right around his Sartorius muscle), and as soon as Ciel looked down at it, it stopped moving.

Not even a second later, he felt a stinging pain in his leg and almost instantly began to feel nauseous.

Without a second thought, he backhanded the caterpillar across the garden, shuddering. Lau, on the other hand, was again smiling to himself. Once more he picked up his pipe and placed it to his lips. He didn't have enough time to suck in; Ciel had rushed over to the mushroom and was glaring at him.

"W-Well, what do I do now?" (He cursed himself for stammering and being so suddenly dependent on Lau.) "Are you sure it was poisonous?"

Lau rested his head against another mushroom stalk, "I'm sure." Just as Ciel was about to fall into a state of further panic, Lau seized his arm, pulling him over towards the mushroom quite roughly. From there he picked Ciel up by his underarms, placing him down gently on the mushroom. From his pocket he retrieved a small piece of tape. Then, he placed the transparent strip over the tiny but noticeable hole in his stocking on the stung area.

Pulling the strip of tape away, he pulled away the saddleback caterpillar's remaining hairs, and, using water from a hookah he had ('_Why do you have even _more_ tools to smoke with?_' Ciel wondered bitterly as he watched Lau pull out the instrument) hidden behind a leaf and mini mushroom top, he successfully washed away the rest of the urticating hairs. As he did all this, Ciel simply stared, not a flinch or a gasp, but he simply stared curiously, something that was probably most unlike him.

And then, once he was finished, Lau simply crossed his arms, laid his head against the mushroom stalk once again and said, "What size do you want to be?" almost as if the saddleback had never entered the picture.

Taken by surprise by the suddenness of the inquiry, Ciel didn't answer for a moment. "Hmm? Well, my normal human-size." Now his attention had been mostly on his leg, wondering what on earth Lau had just done to him.

Inhaling more smoke, Lau hummed. "Are you content now?"

"No. I'd like to be taller," Ciel snapped slightly. Why was he being asked the same question twice? "Being only three inches tall is annoying and inconvenient for me−"

"It is not."

"But I−."

"You'll get used to it in time." With that, Lau ended the discussion, popping the pipe back into his mouth.

Now, Ciel waited patiently until Lau chose to speak again. After a minute or two, Lau removed the pipe from his mouth, yawned once or twice, and then got down off the mushroom, and crawled away. When he was out of sight (though not so much out of earshot) he merely remarked, "One side will make you grow taller, while the other will make you grow shorter."

"The other side? The other side of what?" he called out after Lau, slightly concerned if he didn't hear him. Fortunately, he did, and yelled back, "The other side of the mushroom!"

With a sigh, inner Ciel was thoroughly depressed that what he was sitting on wasn't a muffin but was, indeed, a mushroom. He ripped a part off both sides of the mushroom, glancing at them scrupulously. "One side will make me grow taller..." he trailed off, placing his index finger under his chin.

With another assiduous look, he nipped a tiny portion of the bit of mushroom in his right hand. And, almost instantaneously, his foot painfully struck his chin; he was shrinking even further. Making haste, he only _licked_ the bit of mushroom in his left hand and was returned to his original height. At long last, nothing was looming over him or incredulously teeny to him, it was all the right size.

Brushing off his milk-colored apron, he turned to the left, then to the right, wondering which way he was to go.

"I guess it doesn't matter which direction, so long as I find Sebastian eventually. Hopefully he hasn't gone too far..."


	4. This Place, The Second Alice

Ciel wasn't the only one who had fallen down the rabbit's hole. In fact, he wasn't even the only _human boy_ that had fallen down the rabbit's hole. He was just the only human boy that had fallen down the rabbit's hole and had managed to refrain from adopting Wonderland's asinine way of thinking. This in itself was an amazing feat, especially considering that for an hour and counting his sanity had been on the wane.

The earl guessed it was around noon, considering that the woods he staggered and limped through were fairly dark. Nevertheless, he could still make his way through and was able to distinguish everything that his eye met.

"How big is this place?" he wondered to himself. "This place" of course meant Wonderland as a whole. He had been through an enormous room with the 'Drink Me' bottle and 'Eat Me' cake, along a sort of beach during a "caucus-race", then through a buttercup, daisy, and mushroom garden. He could have sworn that he had seen Tanaka, and then he had also seen Sebastian, and, the most recent, Lau. In Tanaka's smaller form, he didn't talk much anyway, so Ciel had no idea if Tanaka knew anything about this place or not. Then, he had yet to even say a word to Sebastian. And then, well, Lau was a walking paradox and most likely _couldn't_ help.

Finding Sebastian was his best bet.

He also had never seen this part of England, where the food makes you big and sometimes small, and the drinks always made you shrink– to some extent. Was this even England anymore? There was no way it was a dream; he had already felt pain (the sting of that caterpillar), so pinching himself wouldn't do. But how could one fall through a rabbit's hole and end up in an alternate universe? It all made no sense.

"Maybe I'm reading too much into it," Ciel muttered, rubbing at his temples. But even _he _didn't believe that. He wasn't reading too much into it, he was simply try to piece it all together. Maybe this was all just some kind of "animal world"; animals (and larva) were all he had seen till then, anyway (excluding the Tanaka-doorknob).

That was, until he walked deeper into the woods, discussing with himself if Sebastian had ever hinting liking the direction of left or right better... Using that topic as a start, he was muttering, "Which way _would_ Sebastian go?" and "The last I saw of him was after I had fallen down the hole into that first room..."

"There's no use in bothering with complex directions; each way leads to another that leads to another and leads to another which alternatively leads to the original which then leads to yet another."

The voice had come from atop a long, dark, and twisted tree. It was huge with dangling branches, so dark and dead and limp that it simply screamed the words 'horror story' (or something to that effect) to anyone who looked upon it.

When Ciel glanced upwards, he was surprised to see a boy around his own age. At least... he _thought_ the boy looked around his age. He had a winsome, yet sly smirk, a fine complexion, and blonde hair. Like Ciel, his eyes were also blue, though Ciel's were more of a sapphire-blue, while this boy's were an ice crystal-blue.

The boy wore clothing of a wealthy person**–** this being thigh-high black stockings, (magenta ribbons wound around each booted leg), immensely short black shorts, a long, dark purple overcoat (though it was open to reveal a green vest atop a white, silk, dress shirt and a large inky-colored bow). On his index finger, a ruby red-gemmed ring, and, to top off the look, a nice black top hat with a scarlet ribbon wrapped around the middle. He was sitting on one of the bent, unpleasant-looking branches of the equally unpleasant-looking tree, but he was well-supported by it. He was sitting in such a way that his right leg lay diagonally atop the left casually. One hand lay flat on the same branch to keep himself steady, while the other gripped the brim of his top hat as he cocked his head, waiting for Ciel to respond.

All in all, by this boy's clothing, Ciel could tell he was something special. His costume was very different from the minute amount of clothing some of the animals had on. And his clothes were those of a wealthy person. One who was most likely from England.

Finally another human.

"Have you seen a male in a black tailcoat with rabbit... ears..." Ciel trailed off when he saw exactly what he was looking for, perched on the same branch next to this boy. The only difference was that this male clearly _wasn't_ Sebastian. He _did _wear a black tailcoat, and he also had rabbit ears taking over his head. He was even wearing glasses, but this male's eyes were golden, his skin was a lighter shade, and his hair was shorter than Sebastian's.

The blonde boy shook his head, donning a frown. "You missed him quite a while ago."

"Tell me which way he went."

"He went that way," the boy replied, pointing with a finger to the left. "Of course, he then went to the right after that. And then, of course, the left again."

_More complicated directions... _Ciel grit his teeth.

"By the by," the blonde-haired boy said again, once more gripping his top hat's brim and glancing at Ciel, "I've never seen you. What do you call yourself?"

"Ciel Phantomhive."

The boy frowned again, almost as if he looked frustrated. Then, he tilted his head a bit more to the side, almost as if inspecting Ciel. "You look more like an Alice to me..."

Ciel glared at him, gritting his teeth harder. "Alice is a girl's name..."

But before he could actually finish speaking, the boy sprang down from the tree, falling directly in front of him. Ciel backed up from the uncomfortably close proximity, but the boy just took a step closer, all smiles.

"My name is Alois Trancy. That, up there, is my butler, Claude Faustus." Ciel's eye followed Alois's finger to the male on the branch.

_A butler dressed in black with eyes of piercing golden, and a face of sober elegance. _

'Claude'offered forth nothing more than a brusque glance in Ciel's general direction. Then he glanced back at Alois, almost as if this boy had the trigger in which he was allowed to speak and function.

_He reminds me of Sebastian. _Ciel thought, a cruel smirk lined his lips unknowingly. It didn't last long, though, because Alois started talking.

"Where did you come from, Ciel? How old are you? How long have you been here? Oh, did you ever get a chance to see the magnificent singing garden? Or the butterflies— of course you could never actually touch them or they may melt from your body heat. Oh!— and did you ever get a chance to view the Wonderland circus? Or dine at the table of the March Hare? He is a quiet one, now that I think of it. Not very mad at all. They do say that the March Hare and his companion are the maddest things here, but when Claude and I came for a visit, the March Hare seemed perfectly docile. Now, the Hatter is a different story. The Hatter is very mad. One might say insane. Oh, Ciel, tell me you got a glimpse of the Duchess's baby. Isn't she just a doll? Or he, I'm not really sure what gender the baby was. Then, of course, the Cheshire cat. He's a scary one. And-"

"Your Highness," Claude broke in. And almost instantly, peppy as ever, Alois turned around smiling and pleasantly crowing, "Yes, Claude?"

"Mr. Phantomhive has only been here for a mere hour and a half—"

"And if this is what happens when one stays here for longer I'd like to leave quickly," Ciel snapped quite viciously, glaring at Alois and wrenching his arm away from the boy's grip. His cheerful prattling reminded him of all the other happy-go-lucky animals and creatures there. It was immediately obvious that 'Alois' had already gotten sucked into Wonderland's way of thinking. And aside from that, Ciel didn't really _care_ about the March Hatter, or whatever he was called. Nor did he want to hear about the Duchess's baby or wanted to discover what a _Cheshire_ cat was. He didn't understand a word of what Alois was trying to say; it was all nonsense anyway.

"An hour?" Alois repeated, blinking.

'And how long have _you_ been here?' Ciel _wanted_ to ask, but he didn't, lest Alois try to tell him his life story. Sadly enough, Alois answered the question anyway. "Claude and I have been here all day." He turned to Claude with a smile.

Claude sat still.

Then, Alois leapt back onto the branch of the 'horror-story-tree'.

"Alic- I mean, Ciel, if you're looking for the White Rabbit (Ciel preferred the name Sebastian, or at least 'Black Rabbit'), you could go two ways. That way, over there," Alois paused to point in the direction he had pointed to afore, "will lead you to a fork in the road. Go right, and then left. Then you'll find them."

"Right? Then left? I'll just be retracing my steps."

"Well, you could go left, then go right. That's the second direction."

Ciel glared at Alois. "That's the same thing, you're just swapping the directions around."

Alois shrugged, laughing. "Well, at least I gave you two ways to find him. When you see them, ask for more directions. They've been here longer than I."

Ciel, still quite annoyed with this Trancy boy, didn't let the glare slip off his face. "Who's 'them'?"

"Ohh... I don't really remember their names. I wouldn't be able to anyway; their names were too similar. Ask them when you see them. Bye!"

Giving up, Ciel decided to take the parting invitation. He took one last glance at Claude, wondering why he didn't really talk much. Claude also looked back at him, serious-faced. However, as usual, he didn't say anything, though he looked like he wanted to. With nothing more said, Ciel took his leave, Alois smiling and waving pleasantly behind him.

"_**However hard you try, the dream will never break, Ciel Phantomhive."**_

Ciel whisked around upon hearing the voice. It had been too deep and creepy to be Alois', so he rightfully suspected Claude to have spoken. However, Claude was pointing out the time on a golden pocket watch to Alois. It seemed like they both hadn't heard the voice at all.

Lastly, Ciel suspected it was the tree of all things, but that would have been ridiculous.

* * *

**A/N: **I hope that Alois and Claude (though his speaking roles were sadly scant) were more or less in character. All I had to work from was the Kuroshitsuji II trailer, so I don't know if Alois is _that_ peppy. This chapter was fairly short, but if any of the three seemed out of character, please tell me and I'll try to keep them in character for future chapters!


	5. This Place, Twins

Ciel was never really a curious person. Sure, he awaited the ending result of a good chess game with bated breath, but he usually minded his own business and never really pried into other people's affairs. Unless it was an order from Her Majesty, but that was irrelevant. It was because he wasn't curious why he _could_ wait until he reached whomever was waiting at the fork in the road and then to the right. To his loathing, however, he reached the fork in the road faster than he had expected.

The fork in the road was indicated by two wooden fingerposts. The trick was, the two posts were pointed in two different directions– one to the left the other to the right.

Before making a decision, he read the two signs:

"To... Tweedledum's House..." Then he glanced at the other. "To... Tweedledee's House." After contemplating for a while, he shook his head, and headed towards the direction where Tweedledee's house was. Oddly enough, no matter how far he walked, there was always a fork in the road. And what accompanied the fork were always two wooden fingerposts slapped with black paint that read: "TO TWEEDLEDEE'S HOUSE" and "TO TWEEDLEDUM'S HOUSE".

"This is ridiculous! At this rate, they must live in the same house!" Exasperatedly, he turned towards the sign that pointed to 'Tweedledum's House'. It was the only other way to go unless he turned back, but he wasn't sure that if he turned around now he'd get back to where Alois and Claude were.

He dawdled along, the only noise being the taunting, albeit small hisses and whispers of wind and the sound of his heels surprisingly _clicking_ against _dirt_. Aside from that, he had been walking through grass and dirt (mostly dirt) ever since he had entered the forest, and yet his shoes hadn't gotten in the least bit dirty.

He was contemplating the reason for this as he turned a sharp corner, when something bright and gaudy entered his field of vision. At last he looked upwards and noticed two more familiar faces. They were so close that he started and jumped backwards, recovering in a trice.

"Soma? ...And Agni?"

They were the last people he had been expecting. (To be truthful, a tiny part of him thought that it would have been Wendy and Peter from the Circus...)

The two were standing under a tree, and Ciel again noticed the same thing that was bright and gaudy on them: their collars. One was printed with "Dee" the other with the word "Dum". And with a malicious smirk, Ciel was heavily amused to see that Soma had been branded with the collar that said 'Dum'.

The two sat absolutely motionless for quite a long of time. They were staring out into space, standing up, straight as sticks, but completely unmoving and unblinking. Ciel had gotten quite bored of them and he had begun walking around them when one reached out and seized his wrist.

"Ouch–"

"If you think we're wax statues, you ought to pay to see us."

"And– if you think we're alive, you ought to speak."

The first one to speak had been Som– Tweedledum. The second had been Tweedledee. Even though they looked like Soma and Agni, they didn't act much like them at all. Especially Agni.

Ciel pathetically tried to pull his wrist away, but that only made Tweedledum cling on tighter. "I know what you're thinking about," he went on to say. "You're trying to–"

"Find a way out of the woods," Tweedledee interrupted, finishing the sentence for him.

The two smirked at one another, and as they did, Tweedledum let go of Ciel's wrist.

Before saying anything else, the two dropped the topic and went on to something random:

"You're doing it all wrong! When you visit someone, the first thing you say is, "How do you do?" and shake hands!" To demonstrate, the two joined in a half hug, then both held out their hands to Ciel, eagerly waiting for him to shake their hands.

Ciel wasn't very fond of shaking either of their hands, but before he could rudely walk in the other direction, they grabbed both his hands with their own free hands, and in no time, all three were swirling around in a circle. With music coming from who-knows-where, plus their singing, _plus_ the spinning, they were all dizzy in no time at all.

Then, they let go of Ciel's small hands, and stood looking at him for a while. The pause had been abrupt, awkward, and unexpected.

"Are you tired?" Tweedledee suddenly asked Tweedledum.

And Tweedledum promptly responded, "Nah!"

Then, like lasers, their eyes latched onto Ciel. And, randomly: "Do you like poetry?"

Taken aback by the sudden switch of topic, Ciel's face contorted slightly. Then, he simply recovered himself by saying, "Edgar Allen Poe and Richard Le Gallienne are–"

"Eggder Ainen Pie? I've never heard of him," Tweedledum interrupted. And just as Ciel opened his mouth to correct him, Tweedledum turned to Tweedledee and asked, "What shall I recite?" He tapped at his chin, then said jubilantly, "The Walrus and the Carpenter!"

"I don't want to hear stories," Ciel interrupted, "Alois said to ask you two which way the White Rabbi– ahem, a male clad in black with a tailcoat and a pocket watch had gone." Tweedledum, with a mischievous grin plastered across his features, wagged one finger in front of Ciel's face. "This story'll tell you all you want to know about that guy!"

"So you should sit and listen," Tweedledee added gently, beckoning Ciel to a rock to take a seat. Once he sat, the other two zipped in front of him, and the forest, woods, and trees became their stage, as their words were their performance.

'_The sun was shining on the sea,_

_Shining with all his might:_

_He did his very best to make_

_The billows smooth and bright_–

_And this was odd, because it was_

_The middle of the night._

_The moon was shining sulkily,_

_Because she thought the sun_

_Had got no business to be there_

_After the day was done_–

_"It's very rude of him", she said,_

_"To come and spoil the fun!"_

_The sea was wet as wet could be,_

_The sands were dry as dry._

_You could not see a cloud, because_

_No cloud was in the sky:_

_No birds were flying overhead_–

_There were no birds to fly._

_The Walrus and the Carpenter_

_Were walking close at hand:_

_They wept like anything to see_

_Such quantities of sand:_

_"If this were only cleared away,"_

_They said, "it would be grand!"_

_"If seven maids with seven mops_

_Swept it for half a year, do you suppose," the Walrus said,_

_"That they could get it clear?"_

_"I doubt it," said the Carpenter,_

_And shed a bitter tear._

_"Oh, Oysters, come and walk with us!"_

_The Walrus did beseech_.

_"A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk_,

_Along the briny beach_:

_We cannot do with more than four_,

_To give a hand to each."_

_The eldest Oyster looked at him_,

_But never a word he said_:

_The eldest Oyster winked his eye_,

_And shook his heavy head_–

_Meaning to say he did not choose_

_To leave the oyster-bed_.

_But four young Oysters hurried up_,

_All eager for the treat_:

_Their coats were brushed, their faces washed_,

_Their shoes were clean and neat_–

_And this was odd, because, you know_,

_They hadn't any feet_.

_Four other Oysters followed them_,

_And yet another four_;

_And thick and fast they came at last_,

_And more, and more, and more_–_' _

"What does this have to do with Sebas– the 'White Rabbit'?" Ciel glowered at Tweedledum, having interrupted him. Tweedledum, had caught sight of this and wasn't too happy about it. He pugnaciously placed a finger to Ciel's mouth, scowling at him. "Interruptions are impertinent."

"And this story has nothing to do with directions."

Both Tweedledee and Tweeledum stopped short. "Directions? Of course not. Why would any story have anything to do with directions?" Just when Ciel was about to throw somewhat of a fit (very unlike him indeed), Tweedledee spoke up, saying, "Do you hear that?"

Tweedledum looked around for a minute, perking his ears, then he jumped and said, "It's the Duchess!" He snagged Ciel's wrist once more and tore him over to an array of bushes and shrubs.

"See, over there?" he pointed yonder towards a house in the distance. And from what it appeared– a man clad in white scurrying along.

"That's the footman," Tweedledum commented, as if it were obvious.

"He might know more about directions than we," said Tweedledee smiling.

Before long, they had beckoned Ciel off again, through the shrubs. And he traveled to go meet the Duchess.


	6. This Place, Duchess Middleford

It only took Ciel a moment or two to stumble painfully over towards the house. Actually, 'house' was an understatement. A very large understatement. The "house" was more like a miniature-sized palace. In fact, it was almost like a château.

He stood for a moment, looking at the "house" and wondered where the man in white (the footman) had gone.

And, as if on cue, the footman raced out from around the house, dressed in white, holding an intricately decorated envelope. The envelope was garnished with wine-colored ribbons and lace, while the envelope itself was an aesthetic creme, almost off-white, color. It reminded him of the letters he usually received from the Queen, except this one was of a more extravagant kind.

He had been so busy admiring the envelope that he had almost missed seeing the face of the footman himself. His eyes widened to see that the footman was none other than Earl Charles Grey.

Earl Charles rapped on the door, and in no time at all it was opened by another footman, one whom was also dressed to the nines in livery. This other footman was Charles Grey's comrade, Charles Phipps.

Charles Grey bowed slightly before handing over the letter, saying solemnly (which was odd for him since he was usually smiling), "For Her Grace, the Duchess: An invitation from the Queen to play croquet."

Ciel perked his ears. _The Queen? Her Majesty is also here?_

Charles Phipps reached over and took the invitation. And with a solemn tone that matched Grey's, he rephrased it, "From the Queen: An invitation for Her Grace to play croquet." They both bowed, and then Charles Grey hurried off. Ciel wondered if he should follow him or meet the Duchess instead. But, if she were really the Duchess she'd probably know W o n d e r l a n d like the back of her own hand and could offer him some directions.

He hoped.

He stepped out of his hiding place of shrubs placed on the side of the "house". As he brushed loose leaves and twigs off his apron and stepped over the bushes and over towards the porch steps, he was surprised to see that Charles Phipps was still there, sitting on the steps of the porch, staring dumbly up at the sky. Ciel had almost stumbled over him.

After flashing Phipps a dirty look, he reached upwards and wrapped his fingers around the door knocker. But before he could actually knock, Phipps turned towards him with his usual impassive look and replied, "There's no use in knocking. I'm on the same side of the door as you are, and they're making such a ruckus in there, no one would hear you anyway."

Ciel felt his hand drop to his side. Then, he rudely pressed an ear to the door to see if what the footman said was true. He was forced to back away instantaneously when he heard a loud crash, a howl and repetitive sneezing coming from the inside.

And before he could ask, Phipps answered with, "I don't really know what they're doing inside there, either."

Ciel made a half-turn, most of his body still towards the door, but his face towards Phipps. "Is there any other way to get inside? Don't tell me you were fool enough to lock yourself out?"

But instead of answering, Phipps muttered,

"I'll sit here until tomorrow. Then I'll–"

He was interrupted at that moment when the door flung open and a large glass plate surged past Ciel (just barely grazing his arm) and shattered atop Phipp's head.

Almost.

The instant before the glass made contact, he whipped out a sword amazingly made of porcelain, and the glass crashed against it. Tiny pieces showered onto Phipp's lap. The questions that ran through Ciel's head were as follows: _'what sort of person throws perfectly good glass plates out of the house?_ _Secondly, what person carries around a sword with a blade made of porcelain? Third, why am I the only one amazed by this whole experience? _

Luckily, Phipps was able to answer two out of the three questions (in the order that Ciel thought of them):

"Firstly, someone must be angry inside. It is perfectly normal to throw glass plates out of the house when one is upset. Secondly, since throwing glass plates is a normal occasion, I've equipped myself with a porcelain-bladed sword. Porcelain breaks glass so easily because of its weight. As for your third question, I cannot answer."

"Never mind that!" Ciel turned around, peeking back at the door. It had closed again, and he hadn't even seen a person open it to begin with. It was ridiculous to think that it would open on its own, but according to the name _Wonderland_, he supposed that the "wonders" never ceased.

He was sure that the door hadn't been locked so quickly, and hoped it was still unlocked. He grabbed for the doorknob, twisted and it opened. Stepping inside, he was immediately forced to cough. The door led right to a large kitchen, and the kitchen was brimming with smoke.

Near a large cauldron that lay atop a blazing fire stood Paula. And then, not too far away was Elizabeth. She sat in a three-legged stool, nursing a baby doll. The odd thing was, it _looked_ like a doll, but it moved, screamed, coughed, sneezed, and wheezed just like any normal human.

The air was filled with pepper, so, to add to Ciel's coughing, he began _sneezing_ as well. As soon as he did, Elizabeth seemed to come to life, her green eyes twinkling at him. "Aww! How cute! You sneeze so adorably!" She said this as she simultaneously rocked the screaming and sneezing doll-baby.

Paula seemed absolutely unaffected by the pepper.

"Lizzy, what are you doing in here?" He ignored her comment, looking around at the mess that was all over the floor.

"Here? I live here," Elizabeth responded.

"Doesn't the _Duchess_ live here?"

"I am the Duchess."

"What?"

Elizabeth sighed. "Despite being the cutest thing I've ever seen, you certainly do ask a lot of questions. Everything that's come from your mouth has been a question. That's not cute at all!" There was a pause as Paula stabbed down a carrot back into the cauldron. Then, she reached over and shook in more pepper.

The baby still howled and screeched, and Elizabeth finally took notice of it and shook it, rather roughly, and un-Elizabethlike. Then, she picked up the baby, looked it in the eye and shook it a bit more violently− if that were even possible. The result was only getting the baby to hiccup and then begin crying again.

With a saddened sigh, Elizabeth began singing a sort of lullaby:

"_Speak roughly to your little boy,_ _And beat him when he sneezes:_ _He only does it to annoy,_ _Because he knows it teases._

"_I speak severely to my boy,_ _I beat him when he sneezes;_ _For he can thoroughly enjoy_ _The pepper when he pleases!_"

As she sang, she carelessly tossed the little boy doll-baby up and down, sending it into hysteria. Paula and Ciel both covered their ears as the screams carried on, and Ciel actually felt sorry for the little thing. It was being handled so harshly, he wasn't even sure the Duchess was his cousin anymore.

"Another verse? Do you think he needs another verse of the song?" Elizabeth asked, looking at both Paula and Ciel. Paula shook her head, meekly saying, "He's already screaming awfully loud, isn't he? There's no need for him to continue, Your Grace."

"I suppose you're right. **PIG**."

She had said the last word so quickly and loudly Ciel had almost thought she was calling Paula such a name. However, she had been addressing the baby.

The Elizabeth he knew would have wrapped her arms around the baby, rocked it and cuddled it as best she could, doing almost anything she could to make it stop crying. Much like how she babied and cuddled her own dolls. But this was just ridiculous. And to add to that, Elizabeth _and_ Paula didn't seem to know who Ciel was.

Suddenly, Elizabeth turned towards him and actually _tossed_ (threw) the baby at him. "You may nurse it if you like. I'm on my way to play croquet with the Queen. Ta-ta!" She giggled and threw back a smile and small wave.

She didn't get very far before Ciel, who was struggling to hold the baby, called after her, asking panically, "How do you expect me to nurse it?"

Elizabeth turned around, her mouth in a frustrated straight line. "Place it to your breast and let it suck. Every mother, future mother, or at least any sort of lady should be able to do such a task." And with that, she left. Ciel, who was holding the baby quite limply, flushed bright pink and looked down at it.

It seemed to be getting even harder to carry, for the baby had each leg and each arm sticking out straight in the air, almost like a sort of star-fish. Luckily, it had stopped crying as soon as it had landed in his arms. Now it was only wobbling around (almost like an inexperienced person trying to balance on a skateboard. But skateboards are irrelevant to the 19th century...) making soft coos and coughs here and there.

It managed to smack Ciel in the chest with its head, using enough force to send him toppling backwards. His back violently (not to mention noisily) crashed into a wall, but he used it to steady himself, finally placing the baby in such a formation where he could hold it while supporting its head and weight.

He considered leaving the baby in the house with Paula, asking _her_ for directions, and then heading out, but he noticed Paula had also disappeared. The baby also didn't look like it was going to take 'no' for an answer; it had already wrapped its tiny fist around the key he wore around his neck and didn't seem like it wanted to let go.

Once he noticed he and the baby were the only human presence around, he, for once, got to fully survey the pigsty of a room. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a tail turning the corner and running out of a door that was conveniently placed at the side of the house.

The Duchess was insane enough to add pets to her crazed household?

He shifted the baby, and it snorted in response, then gurgled and tugged gently on his key necklace. As there was nothing more to do in the Duchess's "house", Ciel wondered over to the door he had seen the tail disappear out of.

With some difficulty, he managed to open the door (without dropping the baby), ducked low, and finally got back outside, now on the opposite side of the Duchess's "house".

No progress had really been made, and now he even had an extra load. And when he thought about directions, he was none the wiser. How was he going to care for the baby alone? He would need to feed it every... (_every four hours? I think... _he said to himself) so it would survive, but he didn't see a bottle in sight. (And it would be ridiculous to sort through the Duchess's mess for one.)

He sighed again, shifting the baby's weight once more. "How am I to know such things?"

Certainly, the baby looked to be about one month old. That meant every three to four hours it needed to be fed. It also needed to be changed– Something Ciel wasn't looking forward to _ever_ having to do. Maybe he could return the baby to Charles Phipps. That is to say, if Charles Phipps was still on the porch.

He walked along, back into the dreaded forests. But maybe they weren't so dreaded. So far, the forest seemed like a much better place than out in the open. Out in the open there were halfwits. Everyone he had met so far hadn't recognized him, and/or was a dolt. The people of W o n d e r l a n d did things that were heinously idiotic, and he couldn't stand to stay around them any longer without Sebas–

"Hmm?"

His thoughts had been interrupted by a presence from behind. But when he turned around to check, no one was there except for the green trees and the faded view of the Duchess's "house".

He turned around again, drowning his mind back into his thoughts when he felt the presence again. This time, when he spun around, he could have swore he saw a shadow leap into one of the forest trees.

Was it Paula, Claude, or Alois? Or maybe Elizabeth had come back to reclaim her child?

The baby cooed and tugged on the key again, flailing slightly, snorting, then coughing. It was busy smiling and laughing at the frustrated look on its carrier's face. With a scowl, Ciel looked down at it, and was surprised to see that the baby had a very turned-up nose. Its eyes were also very small.

He felt the baby's forehead, his scowl growing when it didn't seem like a fever. It coughed again, then shivered. This time, when he looked down at it, he almost dropped the baby.

There was no longer a human nose on its face; it was a snout. Its hands and feet were now hooves and it had shrunk tremendously. Elizabeth had called the baby a pig, now her child clearly was one.

Just as he began setting the pig down on the grass, someone ran past him from behind.

And of course, when he looked, no one was there.

He turned around in time to see the pig snort gratefully, then run off deeper into the darkness of the forests. Cautiously looking around, he followed it. As he walked further through, the sunlight began being eaten away by the shaded forest trees.

_A pig. Elizabeth's doll-baby turned into a pig. Why? Why was the pig a human to begin with? How did it return to the body of a pig? _

As he discussed this mentally, the same presence came behind him again. Instantly, he turned around, and this time caught sight of who it was.

It happened to be the Duchess's pet. A cat.

"G-Grell?"


	7. This Place, With a Cheshire Cat

"You're−You're a cat?"

"Seeing Sebby's little brat here as well is..." Grell (who was ignoring Ciel's question completely) paused and sighed, thinking of the right words to say as he tapped his chin with his index finger. He gave up quickly, though, and moved on, having not found a word to describe the boy's presence.

"Without Sebby, you look as if you've been rendered powerless." Grell said this as he eyed Ciel's injured leg. Not too long after he noticed the wound, he frowned and gave Ciel a complete once-over, taking a good look at the boy's entire attire.

"What in the seven hells are you wearing?"

"Tch. I'd ask you the same question." Ciel said this with a mischievous smirk as he gave Grell a once-over as well.

The shinigami had furry purple-and-pink-striped ears, a striped scarf, and a kitten's tail to match. His usual red and white-striped bowtie was replaced with a pink and white-striped one. The scarlet coat he had stolen from Madam Red was absent, but the scarlet color was still worn in the form of a vest with a golden button on the left flap. The vest was over a long-sleeved, white dress-shirt, and he wore black gloves on his hands. His pants were the usual faded grayish-black color, studded with golden buttons on the calf. Aside from all this, the oddest part of his outfit were the socks and shoes. The socks seemed to have the exact same purple-and-pink stripes as his tail, scarf, and ears, but his shoes were something else. The shoes were black high-heels, and the actual _heels_ were very thin. The mouths of the shoes were inlayed with bright pink trim. Aside from the shoes, socks, scarf, tail, and ears (especially the ears) this outfit seemed perfectly docile, compared to what he usually wore.

His glasses, Ciel also noticed, were very much the same as they'd always been.

Grell leapt off the bough, sashayed over to Ciel, and passed his tail under the boy's nose seductively. Upon contact, the other sneezed, swatting the tail away with a glare.

"What are you doing here?" Ciel asked, irritatedly, holding his nose. Whatever kind of cat Grell was, he was still a cat, and Ciel still had his allergies.

He turned to look behind himself to talk to Cheshire Grell face-to-face, but as soon as he did, Grell disappeared. He reappeared, not even a moment later, on the tree's bough again, grinning with approval.

"I was sent here because I have a soul to pick up later tonight. I have to wait it out here in these clothes; something about blending in."

Only then did it occur to Ciel that Grell seemed to know who he was, unlike Elizabeth, Lau, and everyone else that had looked familiar thus far.

"You know who I am?"

"Hmm?" Grell frowned again, his look showed some semblance of disgust, but it was very much unreadable. "Of course. You're the one who always manages to pick up all the nice men. Surely, a beautiful woman such as me should be able to attract more handsome men than a scrawny, confused, runt like you."

Grell curled his tail, smirking toothily at his comment. He laid across the bough, stretching out his body like a cat and made a sound similar to a yawn.

"By the by, what became of the baby?" he asked, still smirking. "I'd nearly forgotten to ask."

"The baby? It turned into a pig," Ciel responded, looking around to see if it had come back.

It hadn't. He and Grell were the only ones around.

The shinigami sighed again suddenly, draping itself around the tree as if it were modeling. Then, he began voicing his woes.

"Sebby's been pushing me away so often today. He's even got another girl he's looking for!"

This immediately caught Ciel's attention.

"You saw Sebastian?"

The Cheshire Cat nodded with a pout. "He was looking for someone eagerly. A girl! Whoever that whore is, I'll kill her!"

"A girl?"

"Mh-hmm," Grell nodded again, pouting still.

Ciel grunted, inquiring unsurely, "Sebastian... did he... have rabbit ears?"

Grell blinked at him before blushing profusely and acquiring a fangirlish nosebleed. "YES! He wouldn't even let me touch them, though! He's been rushing around so much today! Bunny-Sebby is so cruel. He even tried to kick me in the face again! How cold he is! But ahhh, how alluring he is as well~!"

Grell shivered, clutching his arms. "Ahh, Sebas-chan~!"

However, the shinigami was snapped out of his fantasy when he heard Ciel yell his name.

"Where did you see Sebastian? Which direction?"

Frowning, Grell placed a fist on his hip. "That information will cost you. I've told you before, I'm not a cheap woman who works for free."

Ciel sighed for the umpteenth time that day, thought for a moment, and looked upwards with a smirk.

"If you give me directions... I'll order Sebastian to let you touch his scut."

Thinking this over, Grell practically melting into a pile of fangirlish nothingness. "YES! I'll do it! I'll do it! But... can I touch it... with my mouth?"

"Anything you want."

"YES!"

(Ciel was well aware that this meant Grell would have his face practically squished into Sebastian's butt, but he was willing to offer anything as long as he could find his butler. Sebastian would probably beat Grell bloody if he tried anyway.)

With a sort of sparkle-filled dance, Grell leapt off the bough, disappearing and reappearing rapidly on all of the trees, blowing kisses, and making squeals only a teenage girl could manage. It was far too easy to hold sway over him, Ciel thought.

Blowing one final kiss, Grell leapt back onto the bough, giving one last spin.

"Which way should I go from here?" Ciel asked, looking from the left to the right. He tried to see between the branches and trees, but his attempts proved fruitless.

"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," Grell said, grinning.

"I don't care which way I go, as long as it−"

"Then it doesn't matter which way you go," Grell interrupted, snickering a great deal. Ciel figured he was having perverted fantasies of Bunny-Sebastian.

"I was going to say, I don't care which way I go, as long as it brings me to Sebastian." Ciel grumbled this with his hands on his hips. "In which direction did you last see him?"

Grell placed a finger to his chin, tapping it thoughtfully. "I went through the Mad Hatter's territory to get here. But−"

This time, Ciel was the one to interrupt, asking, "Mad Hatter? I think I'll stay away from 'mad' people." Grell only snorted at this, though.

"The March Hare lives nearby."

"I think I'll go through the March Hare's territory. It's probably safer that way." _Plus he's not 'mad'_, Ciel thought.

"Oh, don't bother, the March Hare's mad, too."

"I don't want to be around mad people!"

The shinigami shrugged, still grinning from ear to ear. "You can't help that, _we're all mad here_."

Ciel was about to say something when Grell continued on, pointing to the right.

"Any who, I believe you can go through the eastern garden that leads to Sebby's house."

"Se... bastian's... house?"

* * *

**A/N:**_ The ending of this chapter was fairly awkward to me... But, anyway, I can proudly say that Grell's Cheshire Cat outfit is canon. I'm sure some/all of you have heard that Ciel in Wonderland is going to be created into a two parted OVA. Part I will be included on the Kuroshitsuji II DVD that's set for release in late October. Until the premiere, I __**really**__ hope that you will continue to read and enjoy my nutty fanfic and will stick with it until it reaches an end! I know my work won't compare at all to what the animated version would be, but I'd appreciate it if you all would continue reading! It would mean a lot to me! _


	8. This Place, Complicated

"Se...Sebastian has a _house_ here?"

"Hmm... maybe it's more of a cottage of sorts..." Grell mumbled, drumming his gloved nails against the tree's bough on which he still sat. "You can get there through the eastern garden, as I said before." The redhead pointed towards a pile of evergreen shrubs, not even two feet away. It was odd; the shrubs had been so close, yet Ciel had never noticed them.

After staring at them for a while, he headed in that direction, placing one foot inside first before letting the other get engulfed in the prickly branches. He took extra care when positioning his right leg, for it still pained him terribly.

Not long after he had placed both legs inside the shrubs had he noticed he was stuck. He'd have to bend down so low and awkwardly if he were to get his head through.

That was when he heard Grell double over in light laughter, mockingly cooing, "What? Are you stuck?"

With a glare in the shinigami's direction, Ciel crouched down gently, got on all-fours, finally became unstuck, and crawled off through the shrubs.

Fortunately, Grell had been right.

Ciel had laboriously crawled, scratched, scrambled, and tumbled through what seemed like an endless supply of shrubs, but he finally found himself looking at a house.

In fact, the house was hard to miss; it was colossal.

And pink.

And _very un_-demonic for Sebastian.

The entire house was various shades of pink, and was decorated with cute little designs and trinkets here and there. The lining around the shutters was pink, the curtains were pink (with small designs of white rabbit heads) the porch was dusted to perfection in what looked like pink chalk, and even the door and doorknob were a crystal pink hue. The roof (dark pink) even had enormous rabbit ears protruding from it.

As soon as Ciel's eyes met the eccentric-looking house, his mouth dropped open in shock. It wasn't until he saw Sebastian pacing (Ciel was glad to see he had stopped hopping.) up and down the pathway that he forgot all about the house.

From what he could hear, Grell had been telling the truth again. Sebastian _was_ calling out the name of a girl as he also mumbled about how late he was.

Having not been able to wait any longer, Ciel rushed down the hill towards the house and towards his butler. As he got closer, he realized the name Sebastian was calling for didn't sound familiar at all.

"_Mary Ann?_"

He approached his butler from behind, but the latter heard him instantly and turned around. Scowling.

Ciel was so taken aback by the rare expression, that he almost rammed into his butler's back. Sebastian had almost never glared at him; he was surprised to receive such a dirty look from his butler.

As he stood there, staring up at Sebastian, the man took no time at all and reached down, seizing Ciel's wrist and roughly yanking him towards his chest.

"Mary Ann, have you no clue of the time? It's already a quarter past the fourth hour!" (Sebastian _said_ it was a quarter past the fourth hour, but when Ciel got a brief glimpse at the pocket watch he was holding, he was _positive_ it only read 10:30.)

Glaring up at Sebastian, Ciel wrenched his arm from the tight grip, then proceeded to rub at his wrist which was now red and sore.

"Mary Ann? I don't even know who that is! Where have you been running off to all day? I thought you promised to never leave my side."

Sebastian just scoffed, turned his back to the younger male, and scowled again. "So insolent... But as of now, I haven't the time. Go upstairs and fetch my gloves and my fan."

Subsequently, he grabbed Ciel's shoulders, and ushered him quickly up the porch and into the enormous (but very pleasant and neat) house.

"And Mary Ann, please make haste." After saying this, he closed the door behind him none-too-quietly. With the slamming of the door, Ciel heard his stomach growl loudly with it.

"He ignored me! That bastard... How dare he talk to me like tha–" In the middle of his ranting, he was interrupted by the sight of something moving.

Once he looked up, he noticed a small rabbit, which looked like a toy, poke its head out from the top of the grand staircase and wave at him with a smile. Its nose twitched and then it ran off into one of the inner rooms.

Oddly enough, Ciel felt inclined to follow it. He made his way up the staircase, then walked into the room he had seen the petite white rabbit scamper off into.

The room smelled fresh, airy, and relaxing. It was cool, but seemed mostly empty. The room only had a bed, glass table, a large wardrobe, a jewelry box, and some curtained windows.

Ciel easily maneuvered around the room, and spotted the small white bunny again. It had stopped in front of the wardrobe, near the bottom drawer. Ciel went over to it and crouched down next to it. Once he did, the bunny pointed at the drawer, then twitched its nose, still smiling.

Blinking, Ciel opened the drawer, then searched through it. In an instant, he spotted the fan Sebastian spoke of. He picked it up, and then stood to follow the bunny again. The bunny smiled pleasantly in response, then hopped off towards the glass, one-legged table that was near the window. The table held up the jewelry box, and also held two or three clean pairs of white gloves.

As he picked up the gloves, his eye couldn't help but meet the open jewelry box. Not only was the box filled with scattered pearls, sapphires, emeralds, and other valuable minerals (_why does he have jewelry? _Ciel paused to inquire), but there were also cookies. Mouth-watering looking cookies.

The edges of each dessert were delicately decorated with light pink frosting, and each cookie said _'Eat Me'_ in cursive so beautiful that Ciel immediately recognized the handwriting as Sebastian's.

This made him think of the small cake he had tasted earlier that had made him grow. The cookies would probably have the same effect on him. But he was so hungry, and he had been longing for Sebastian's desserts all day that he almost began not to care if the dessert affected his height or not.

Almost.

"If I'm to grow here, I don't know how big I'll become," he murmured, cautiously. It had taken long enough to get back to his normal height, and he didn't want to be roaming around W o n d e r l a n d at ten inches tall again. However, the desperate side of his brain coaxed him to at least _taste_ some of the cookie. What harm could that do?

Convinced, he licked some of the icing off of the dessert, and noticed from the taste of the crumbs that it was a sugar cookie.

No sooner had he tasted it had he confirmed that Sebastian had made it. The cookie was so sweet and so delicious, Ciel almost gobbled the entire thing down that very moment. He would have, if he hadn't noticed he began to grow.

"Again?"

He looked down just in time to see the petite white bunny run off in fear out the door and down the stairs. And no sooner had he seen this, had he felt his head smack against the roof, and then rip _through_ the roof.

The room began feeling cramped, and as a last resort, Ciel stuck one arm through the window, and then one leg clumsily through the chimney, his head was still stuck through the hole in the roof. In this position, he was restricted and compacted and in even more pain than before.

Then, he heard the sound of footsteps. They came closer, and finally he felt a gust of wind enter the house. Someone must have opened a door...

The door creaked, and as soon as it opened wide enough, piles of his crumpled apron tumbled down the stairs and out the door. As soon as _this_ happened, he heard Sebastian's voice calling, "What did you do?"

Ciel only grunted and twisted his arm in response. He felt his elbow knock over the glass table, and then watched as the jewelry box, its contents, and the cookies plummeted out the open window. Once he turned his head to the left (which was hard to do, since there wasn't much room to do _anything_) he saw Sebastian tapping his foot and glaring up at him.

Then, he heard him say, (to someone he couldn't see) "Where's Bill? Bill!"

"Bill?" Ciel repeated, blinking. He was about to yell for help, but no sooner had he opened his mouth, had he seen Abberline making his way over to the window with a large ladder.

"Go down the chimney and take that monster out of my house," Sebastian snapped at Abberline. _(Sebastian sure is unpleasant...) _The other just nodded and propped the ladder against the house, then he began climbing.

As if to help, Ciel pulled the leg that was stuffed up the chimney as far down as he could. With much difficulty, he also managed to pull his entire head back down into the domain of the house, and then waited for Abberline to make an appearance at the top.

It didn't take long, and he actually felt slightly relieved when he saw Abberline looking down at him from the dark chimney.

"There's not a monster down here. Are you sure? I don't see anything." Indeed, it was hard to see down the chimney since it was so dark. "I'll fix the problem in no time– AHHH, AHHH, MONSTER, THERE'S A MONSTER DOWN THERE!"

Just by hearing that much, Ciel was sure that this was Abberline's unprofessional, irritating twin-brother. He rolled his eyes, expecting Abberline to continue screaming at the top of his lungs, when he heard something crash and then felt something small plop onto his stomach.

Stupid Abberline appeared to have fallen down the chimney and landed on him. And now that he was down there, face-to-face with the "monster" he began screaming 'MONSTER' at the top of his lungs again.

"I'm not a monster! I'm only a–"

"What? You're huge!"

"I'm still a human being."

"Yes, but you're HUGE!"

Ciel sighed, stressed and frustrated, but he perked his ears once he heard Sebastian begin speaking again.

"We'll just burn the house down, then."

At this, he felt very pale. Considering how unpleasant Sebastian was acting, he probably _would_ burn the house down with the two of them still inside.

"Is there anything in here I can eat or drink that will help me shrink?" Ciel asked Abberline then, trying to hurry before Sebastian decided to gather firewood or something.

The other man looked around the room (though he still sat on Ciel's stomach), then his face lit up as he began rummaged around in his small coat. And, from a small pocket, he produced a bottle of pinkish-red liquid.

"Here, drink this. This should do the trick."

Upon saying this, he hurried over to Ciel's arm, (taking care not to step on his neck or too much on his chest) and left the bottle in his hand.

After some grunting and awkward shuffling, Ciel finally opened the bottle and got it to his mouth. He only needed to taste a little before he began shrinking rapidly. After a gulp or two, he was his normal height, and was surprised to see that this wasn't Abberline's brother, but Abberline himself. (He noticed this one didn't have a mustache.)

Once he was his normal height, their positions were switched. Instead of Abberline sitting on Ciel's stomach, Ciel was not sitting atop Abberline's knees, face-to-face and chest-to-chest with him.

"You're not a monster at all; you're just a little kid." He smiled and patted Ciel on the head (Ciel grumbled at this, responding with, "I'm not a child."), then picked him up and carried him out the door.

"We've fixed the problem!" he called, still smiling. Other W o n d e r l a n d animals that had come to see all the commotion, along with Sebastian, rushed over towards them. Some congratulated Abberline, but Sebastian just snorted.

"Mary Ann, my gloves, please."

Abberline instantly frowned at this. "Mary Ann? But this doesn't look like your housemaid, Mr. White Rabbit. I think this is Alice."

"My name is Ciel!" (Everyone seemed to ignore this declaration...)

Sebastian's eyes widened at the name _'Alice' _and he immediately kneeled on one knee, taking Ciel's hand in his. "Please excuse me, Miss Alice. I've mistaken you for someone else." As an emphasis on his apology, he kissed Ciel's hand, instantly making the other blush.

"My... my name is Ci–"

"I apologize that I couldn't entertain you, Miss Alice, but I'm in a very big hurry. Now, if you would excuse me..." He stooped down, picked up his gloves and fan from the ground and rushed off once again, not another word.

"Wait!" Ciel twisted and turned, trying to get Abberline to put him down. And as soon as he did, he rushed after Sebastian, calling out for him.


	9. This Place, Mad Tea Party

"Sebastian! Wait!" Ciel called out to whom he thought was his butler as he dashed down the path, past the house, and right back into the woods. He could hear Sebastian's footsteps and could even hear his low repetitive murmuring of, "It's late... It's late." It only occurred to him that he was back in the dreaded woods when he saw that there was less sun blanketing the area, due to the trees that loomed large. Now that he was back in the woods, he wondered what kind of creature he'd see next...

Eventually the sound of Sebastian's voice got farther and farther away, yet the sound of his footstep resonated throughout the woods hauntingly. The sound soon transformed into a ruckus– banging against his ears and cracking into his skull. It became so loud that he had to cover his ears, but no sooner had he done this did he hear the loud ticking of a clock. The ticking filled his ears, making an ear-splitting and ceaseless noise.

Ciel soon found himself gritting his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut in pain as he tumbled into a fierce headache. His head pounded, and the noises from the clock were so loud and tortuous, he felt like screaming. But he didn't allow himself to, lest the headache got worse.

The merciless ticking continued, completely blotting out the sound of footsteps. Ciel soon found himself trying to turn back, away from the sound and to the arms of peace and quiet.

_"What is this? This noise is..." _

He didn't have time to finish the thought, and he was only allowed a single step before he heard the sound of rustling trees amidst all of the ticking. Half-opening his left eye, he saw Sebastian looking around, almost as if he was lost. The man then placed an index finger under his lips in thought, before turning and disappearing to the right.

And all of sudden, everything stopped.

The ticking stopped echoing, then it ceased completely, and everything was returned to quiet.

Confused, Ciel looked around, surveying the area. What had just happened? What was that noise? He pondered for a second before the greenery reminded him that he still needed to catch and talk to Sebastian. Almost instantly, he tore through the trees, calling after his butler. It wasn't long before he finally reached an area where the land was a bit smoother and flat. In fact, the area seemed different all around.

It was darker there (it looked to be around evening time, despite the fact that Sebastian's pocket watch had read 10:30.) and the trees weren't green, but were instead purple, teal, and yellow, and their sizes were also more manageable and easier for climbing. Also, the air's fragrance was tainted faintly with a sweet smell.

Slightly curious, Ciel pushed past the hanging leafy branches, looking behind him and around the area. He entered a small area shaded by clustered trees, but only turned to the front once he heard the sound of splashing.

Looking up, he was face-to-face with a smirking man pouring tea from a rather elaborate-looking teapot. The man held the teapot so far up from the cup that some of the tea was splashing around quite loudly, but not a single drop hit the ground.

"Welcome to the tea party~."

"What?"

"Have some tea. I just baked some cookies." The man was quick to shove the tea cup into Ciel's hands, and he immediately began emptying the contents of the teapot into the cup, snickering at times for no apparent reason.

"I'm in a hurry..." Ciel grumbled, but he still held the cup out; the tea actually smelled pleasing.

Giggling, the man's smile grew even wider. "It'll only take a minute, depending on how fast you drink. Besides," he flung out a golden pocket watch, smirking at the hands of the ticking clock. "It's about time for high tea, isn't it?"

"You mean afternoon tea."

"Same difference!" and at this he doubled over in laughter, while ushering Ciel over to the table. The man himself waltzed over to the table, off towards his empty seat.

"We have another guest for our tea party: Little Alice."

"My name isn't Alice, it's Cie–"

"You can call me the Mad Hatter," and he began chuckling to himself again as he took his seat at the end of the table.

Upon hearing that name, Ciel felt his stomach sink a bit. Grell had told him about the 'Mad Hatter', and the fact that the Hatter was the spitting image of the Undertaker didn't make anything better. But then, Ciel also realized that the Mad Hatter had taken away his tea cup. He frowned, then noticed something from the corner of his eye.

"Dr-Drocell?"

The same Drocell Keinz that had kidnapped his cousin was seated at the table, sipping tea as if he belonged there. As soon as Ciel looked at him, he stared back, purple eyes glowing. He slowly placed his cup down, saying, "Welcome, Little Alice, I am the March Hare," in a monotone, before picking it back up and sipping at it again.

With a tiny cringe, Ciel glanced at the Mad Hatter again, noticing him with his chin laying atop his folded hands, laughing. His outfit was quite an eye-opener: a long black coat, decorated with various pale greyish-blue buttons that lined the sides. A purple vest, also lined with buttons; a high-collared white dress-shirt with grey and white cuffs, covered with a medium-sized black bow. The accessory reminded Ciel faintly of the bow Sebastian had been wearing, except the symbol in the middle of the bow was a skull, whereas Sebastian's had been a heart. Around his waist was a golden belt (though it looked more like a simple string with golden circles attached to it) that hung low and loose, gently resting against his upper calf and thigh. The Hatter's pants were designed with black-and-white vertical stripes, and his boots were about shin-high with chunky heels and slightly upturned fronts.

Atop his head was a large, black top hat with a Byzantine purple colored ribbon wound around the hat's base. Three playing cards were stuck to the top hat, slid in-between the ribbon. Ciel spied a Queen, a Heart, and a King, though he was sure he saw a small (almost invincible) tear on the top right corner of the Queen card.

With a small sigh, he made his way over to the table that stretched no shorter than twenty feet. He scooted back a chair (something he had done _very_ rarely for himself) and sat in it. No sooner had he done this had his eyes widened at the table.

Directly in front of him, piled high on a large white plate, were no less than five dozen fairy cakes, each one generously coated with a different color of icing and dotted with festive-colored nonpareils. To his left, at least nine Bakewell tarts lined the table, each one filled with either raspberry or almond jam. To his right, a salver, similar to the ones Sebastian presented letters to him on, carried an assortment of cookies having at least twenty different flavors on display. While some looked soft and messy, others looked crumbly and crisp. Steam rose from them and their scents lingered and swirled up and down the table like a ghost. Further down the table, there was a pure white three-tiered tray that displayed an amazingly vast assortment of cakes. His eye caught sight of butter cake smothered with brown hazelnut frosting, numerous blackberry Eccles cakes, warm squares of gingerbread with some slices topped with glazed almonds, scented mint cakes, tea cakes with luscious-looking sultanas and jams spread across them, a seven-layered strawberry shortcake with no less than fifty plump strawberries on the first layer alone, warm Queen Victoria cake with hefty spoonfuls of whipped cream dripping from the sides, and even several Christmas cakes that sat upon the table next to the gooey Christmas pudding. Near this tray were full bowls of strawberry, cherry, and blackberry Summer pudding.

Behind the tiered-tray of cakes was another, only this one was filled with a colorful display of petits fours and mignardises. Some were drizzled with Fondant or glacé icing while others were immersed in Chocolate Ganache Glaze. Each mini cake was drizzled with colorful chocolate so the cakes looked more like wrapped gifts with ribbons and top hats. Some cakes were even shaped into hearts while others were skulls and diamonds. Even though they all looked like Christmas gifts, no two were decorated the same.

Also in front of him, Ciel saw several heaps of vanilla slice, adorned with drizzled chocolate and plump, ripe, and scarlet strawberries. There was also freshly cut Battenburg cake, glistening with marzipan and apricot jam, and an array of chocolate éclairs that lined no fewer than forty small saucers. Twelve small saucers carried warm, freshly baked madeleines, some sweetened with almond, others with a slight hint of butter. Lemon and vanilla custards dripping with globs of chocolate ran down the sides of bowls; caramel profiteroles doused in chocolate sauce and dusted with powdered sugar piled atop a small china plate; boudoir biscuits with fruit, and sponge cake trifles heaped together on a plate decorated in soft pink flowers, and near them was a plate topped solely with Turkish delight.

In a transparent stem glass (even though many of them were also scattered about the tablecloth) Ciel spotted several wrapped candies and truffles and lollipops. Upon closer inspection they appeared to have his company's logo on them. Only this time, the logo was on the front and the back of each wrapper. The picture on the front was a crown on a cat, but on the back was a cat on a crown. On another candy, the cat was right-side up on the front, and upside down on the back. Each candy was either chocolate, vanilla, or caramel-flavored, and some wrappers were even broken open to reveal chocolate ooze seeping out and onto the tablecloth. One-fourth of the truffles were drizzled with a hardened whipped caramel and stuffed with nougat, cream, and milk, while two-fourths of them were filled with sticky ganache and berries, nuts, and chocolate chips. The other fourth was filled with fudge and a few droplets of liqueur for added sweetness. The wrappers of these treats glittered in the waning sunlight, like a palpable rainbow of stars upon the table.

On its own saucer lay soft pillows of marshmallows. Some were saturated with melted chocolate, while others were left white and blank. On another little saucer, not far from the marshmallows, was a teeming display of freshly baked scones and muffins. The scents of sour-sweet blueberry, warm poppyseed and apple, and spicy cinnamon muffins seized the air and wafted around the fragrance. Scones, accompanied by jams and butter complimented the display of muffins, ensuring any passerby (if there was one) a second glance at their crisp, flaky, exteriors.

In a two-tiered tray was a carousel of ice cream sundaes and parfaits. Crystals of ice and bleeding strawberries lay fresh atop the mountains of vanilla ice cream, splashed messily with strawberry sauce. The parfaits on the surface of the second tier were all adorned with freshly sliced peaches, black and red raspberries or cherries. In a bowl near them, candied fruits lay heaped, beckoning excited fingers to delight in their sweetness.

And on the table, in between all these delights were teas of all kinds.

Scents of Earl Grey, Assam, Ceylon, Rosehip Herbal, Keemun, and Chai with ginger pleasantly invaded the noses of all who sat at the table. And up and down the table's length Ciel spotted various tea cups, saucers, sugar and creamer sets, and teapots. No teapot looked the same as another, and they all had their own patterns and designs. Some were huge, others were small, some were even turned upside down, and others had three spouts. Ciel caught sight of one that had nine spouts and had to be turned upside down to be used properly. One teapot in particular (the first one the Mad Hatter had held) was made of porcelain and had one of the wackiest purple grunge and black swirl and skull designs Ciel had ever witnessed. Some teapots looked even crazier than this one, but others looked perfectly docile and elegant-looking.

In the middle of the table, stood the biggest teapot. The lid was on it and it let out no steam, so Ciel was unsure about what it was to be used for.

Instantly, Ciel felt Hunger's fingers claw at him, dragging its nails down his chest and gripping his stomach. His stomach roared (particularly loudly, causing him to blush slightly in embarrassment) in response, trying to tempt his mind into salvaging the table and indulging in _all_ of the goodies that he knew would begin to cloy his senses before he even finished them all. But then, something else became horribly apparent.

Even though he marveled at the decadent feast of colors and future cavities before him, he was just as marveled by the incredible mess that also lay across the table. The table was in complete disarray, covered with broken and chipped cups, half-eaten (some half-bitten off) pastries and candies, spills, shattered glass, dirty and stained silverware, and napkins that were as wrinkled and crumpled as morning bedsheets. Pushing the images of the lovely desserts out of his mind, he pulled a disgusted face, and soon he wasn't even sure if the feeling in his stomach was hungry or nausea.

Snickering slightly and mistaking the repulsed look on his guest's face, the Hatter gingerly picked up one of the many chipped cups made of porcelain and offered it to him, chortling lowly. "Little Alice needs to relieve herself?"

Ciel didn't even try to hide his shock by this. He felt a shiver race back down his spine as he turned beet red. "I am NOT peeing in a cup!"

He hadn't meant to be vulgar, but the situation called for it. Besides, "relieving one's self" in a _cup _was, to him, much more vulgar than anything he had said. Especially since the cup had a chance of being used again... for drinking purposes.

"Suit yourself, Little Alice," and the Mad Hatter placed the cup back onto its saucer.


	10. This Place, Riddles

It seemed that his feelings of hunger outweighed those of disgust. Ciel examined the large table again, feeling his stomach scratch and beg at him once more for food. Finally deciding to silence it, he reached over and picked up one of the profiteroles covered in chocolate sauce. Just as he opened his mouth, he heard the Mad Hatter chime in, "Why don't you taste some wine first?"

He closed his mouth, halting his taste buds from the delicious trip they would have embarked on, and placed the dessert on a saucer that looked fairly clean. He searched the table visually, seeing nothing but tea.

"There's only tea."

"Of course, because this a _tea_ party." the Hatter doubled over in laughter, slapping his hand on the table at his own joke. Ciel, however, didn't find it amusing, and his face fell into a scowl. "Then why did you bother to offer it!" It was a rhetorical question, considering how he didn't wait for any answer. He was more focused on filling his stomach.

Again he was interrupted, but this time by the March Hare. The orange-haired host had shot in front of him, shoved a teacup decorated in blue flowers into his hands and began filling it heftily with sugar from the sugar bowl. Then, he tilted his head curiously at Ciel, explaining his actions with nothing more than, "Assam or Assam?"

For a second Ciel waited for him to finish, but when he heard him say nothing more, he directed his scowl at him. "Assam? Why are you offering me the same kind of tea twice?"

"You would not like tea?" the March Hare questioned, placing the teapot down on the table. Subsequently, he lifted the sugar bowl and dumped what was left into the cup. Ciel shifted uncomfortably in his seat to avoid sugar spilling onto his clothes. After the March Hare emptied the bowl, he grabbed one of the two-spouted teapots and dumped all of the contents into the already overfilled sugar cup.

Now, the cup looked like a revolting mixture of powdered red liquid, and it was pooling all over the table.

"What a mess," Ciel commented frowning, but no sooner had he said this had he been wrenched upwards and yanked down the table. He was shoved into a large armchair, a little bit closer to the middle of the table and the huge teapot that loomed large.

The Hatter had followed, and happily distributed a new array of teacups to each member. "May I interest you in a truffle?" he snickered, holding up the plate of fudge and liqueur-filled truffles. He didn't receive an answer from the boy; instead, Ciel instead had taken notice of a small smudge of dried tea on the teacup he had been given and tossed the cup, exchanging it for a cleaner one. "Why did we move?"

"That part of the table was dirty. Here we have cleaner cups," the March Hare replied in monotone, taking a seat at the table.

"The entire table is dirty! And the cups here are as messy as the ones up there."

The Mad Hatter sat atop the table, pouring a cup of what smelled like Earl Grey tea from an eighteen-spouted teapot. "May I interest you in Ceylon tea? It's newly brewed." He offered over the cup, even though Ciel hadn't even answered yet. Once the boy received it, he frowned (this seemed to be something he was doing a lot of lately) then muttered, "this isn't Ceylon tea; it's Earl Grey."

And for some reason, the Mad Hatter broke into such strong laughter he fell _off_ the table, rolling onto the grass and continued laughing raucously.

"I don't see what's so funny," Ciel replied, scooping two small spoonfuls of sugar into the steaming cup. He then looked over the edge of the table to get a better look at the Hatter. While he was distracted, the March Hare reached over, poured all of the contents from a different sugar bowl into Ciel's cup and quickly sat back down, cranking up his music box that lay on the side of the table. He placed his cheek in his palm as he cranked his precious toy, murmuring dully, "It's almost time... It's almost time..."

Ciel sat back down with a sigh, closing his eyes in exasperation. With his eyes still closed, he tilted his cup back to taste the Earl Grey tea, but instead his lips and nose collided with a mountain of powdery white. Immediately, he opened his eyes, gazing at all of the "sugar" that lay atop his drink.

Seeing his displeased face, the March Hare (who was holding a cup and saucer himself) cocked his head curiously. "Alice does not like sugar in her tea?"

"This isn't sugar; this is salt!"

The Mad Hatter, who had just resurfaced, fell over again, guffawing wildly as he hit the grass.

Steamed, Ciel used the napkin that had been pressed to his lap to wipe his mouth. Placing the teacup down, he deemed it unsafe to drink and decided to forget about tea and eat something instead.

Taking a fork and wiping all of the invisible grime that was probably on it onto the same napkin, he stabbed at a slice of mille-feuille, inspecting it before he began cutting it.

But before he could lift the fork into his mouth, his arms were seized and he was lifted out of the chair. He was whisked to the middle of the table and was dropped crookedly into another chair. Upon his departure from his previous seat, he heard the Hatter and the Hare (the ones who were moving him) chanting "Move down, move down."

He had been dropped uncomfortably into a wooden chair so that his legs dangled over the chair's arm and his bow fell into his face. Moving it, he sat up, "What was _that_ for?"

"That part of the table was dirty. Here we have cleaner plates," the March Hare replied in monotone, taking another seat. The Mad Hatter then took a seat on Ciel's left side, dipping a dish into a filled teacup as if it were some kind of dessert.

"Now, for a riddle: Why is a raven like a writing desk?" he grinning at Ciel, awaiting his answer.

Hearing this, all of his anger seemed to deflate. His childish hunger for games took over instantly.

"Why is a raven..." Ciel trailed off, thinking about how to answer such an odd riddle. As he thought, the Mad Hatter reached across the table, slicing a piece of the strawberry shortcake. After topping it with some of the whipped cream from the Queen Victoria sponge cake, he handed the dish to Ciel. The earl took it, but was too involved in solving the riddle that he placed the dish in front of him but only toyed around with the fork.

As they waited for him to come up with an answer, the Hatter pulled out his pocket watch and inspected it for the time. Before long, he nudged the March Hare, asking, "What day of month is it?" The March Hare shrugged and elbowed the huge teapot before standing on the table and peering inside of it. He yelled down, "what day of the month is it?" and cocked his ear to hear what whatever inside had to say.

After a while, he sat back down, and turned to the March Hare, reporting, "the Dormouse says it is the 35th." Tapping at the face of the watch, the Hatter shrugged, saying, "It's two days slow. I suppose we should add jam to fix it."

Instead of jam, the March Hare reached across the table and took the watch, dipping it into a full cup of Chai tea. He inspected the face before handing it back to the Hatter, signifying that there was no change. Content, the Mad Hatter turned back to Ciel, placing his chin upon netted hands that were propped upon the table.

"Have you guessed the riddle yet?"

With a shrug, Ciel replied, "The most I could think of was that both never have the wrong end in front." He had to admit that his answer was a bit confusing, and he didn't understand much of the riddle himself. But being a lover of games, he was slightly eager to see what the answer was. "What's the answer?"

He received a quick shrug and then a bellow of laughter, as the Hatter crowed, "I haven't the slightest~!"

"Nor do I," the March Hare chimed in.

And from the huge teapot, they heard a, "Nor do I."

The March Hare stood up again, as did the Mad Hatter, and Ciel found himself whisked closer to the end of the table. He glared at them both, smoothing out his apron (which had flown over his head altogether) and replied, "I wish you wouldn't do that."

Before he could finish scolding them, the top of the huge teapot came off, and out came Ran Mao, dressed in a rather skimpy outfit. She sat on the ledge of the teapot, sipping her own cup of tea. What smelled like Nilgiri tea dripped from her body, and it was quite easy to see through her clothing.

Ciel's face was nothing short of shock as he couldn't help but watch her for a few moments, unable to stop staring. He then began wondering why she was wandering around with the Mad Hatter and March Hare instead of Caterpillar Lau that resided somewhere in the gardens.

His train of thought was cut off as the world filled with music. A soft sweet lullaby filled his ears and he instantly remembered the tune and connected it to his childhood. The melody floated from the March Hare's music box, and all guests at the tea party began singing along with the song:

_"Twinkle, twinkle, little bat!_

_How I wonder what you're at!_

_Up above the world you fly, _

_Like a tea-tray in the sky"_

Though perplexed, Ciel decided it was best not to ask about the song at all. The answer he would receive was probably a paradox, much like how everything else at the table was. The music box's melody stopped abruptly and the box let out a ghastly _snarf_-like noise. Starting slightly, Ciel turned towards the March Hare's toy which was trembling upon the table.

Dripping from the sides of the box, almost like a volcano, were magenta beads of jam (and some of what looked like treacle). Why was there jam in a music box?

The box made another _snarf_ noise before it spat out the rest of the jam, attacking everyone at the table. Jam and treacle flung everywhere through the air. Ruining the perfectly white cake tray, and discoloring one of the open sugar bowls' sugar.

No one was spared, and once the music box's tyrant was stopped (Ran Mao had slammed her foot down on it, shutting it), everyone looked at themselves to inspect the damage their clothing had taken. The Hatter's nice skull tie was saturated with jam and treacle. What wasn't on his tie dripped down his dress shirt and coat. He attempted to wipe the skull clean with his black coat sleeve, smiling as he did so.

The March Hare's coat had taken most of the damage. The sides were splashed and slathered in jam and the treacle clung to and in-between the buttons. It was going to take triple washings to remove it.

Ciel had turned out lucky when it came to the treacle. Being as short as he was, he was easily able to duck under the table, and managed to only get a drop or two of treacle on his bow. It blended right in with the inky hue, but he had still taken it off and began scrubbing it out with a napkin.

The jam, however, had splashed along his right cheek and arms, creating quite a mess on his flesh.

The Hatter and Hare returned to their seats; the Hatter did so whilst dipping a chocolate cookie into a teapot, while the March Hare piled copious amounts of sugar into his cup of black tea. Seeing as how everyone had calmed down, Ran Mao came alive again. She crawled down the table towards the three of them, though her face looked expressionless.

She finally reached her destination (Ciel) just as he held up the clean bow in semi-triumph. He fixed it back onto his head (and he really didn't understand why he had done this, considering bows belonged on the heads of _girls_, and he most certainly wasn't a _girl_) just as his arm was abruptly wrenched towards his left.

He looked up to see Ran Mao. She cradled his arm in her hands, almost as if it was injured, and began _licking_ the jam off it. And she clearly did this with a straight face– as per usual.

"R-Ran Mao, what are you doing?"

He wrenched his hand away from her, though the touch of her tongue still lingered on his skin. For the most part, his arm was clean, but very wet. He attempted to scoot away from her, but she only pulled him closer.

To his horror, he fell right into her dripping chest, and only then realized what she was wearing:

Translucent tights, high-heels, and a silk black leotard-corset. Upon her head were dark gray mouse ears. A high tuxedo-esque collar held together with a black button, and white cuffs with identical black buttons completed the look. Practically the whole outfit was black, save for her collar and cuffs.

She smelled of Nilgiri tea, and, if it wasn't bad enough that her clothes were revealing, you could see right through them. Every curve. Being squished against Ran Mao's breasts (which were practically falling out of her leotard anyway) didn't help much either.

She cupped his left cheek, turning his face towards hers and bent down, licking up the stray splotches of jam off of his right cheek.

No sooner had he begun to turn away had Ran Mao let go of him, deadpanning, "You're all done." With a shiver that lingered longer than he had liked, Ciel turned back towards the Hatter and Hare, just in time to be whisked to the end of the table.

At this end, he was seated in a chair right in front of a saucer. A milk-jug had been upset and there was now milk dripping off the dish and onto the ground. With a pout at their uncleanliness, Ciel gingerly pushed the dish away, placing his cheek atop his fist.

He had been here for quite a while, and was getting tired of being whisked back and forth, talking of meaningless things, and discussing nonsensical riddles with no answers. At least an hour had to have passed, and he stood up, turning to the Mad Hatter and asked for his pocket watch.

The Hatter happily handed it over, and Ciel opened it to check the time.

The face read: _Hcram the 35th_ and said nothing about the time at all.

He frowned, cocking his head in wonder about the word, _'Hcram'_s meaning. He even searched for any words in his French vocabulary that matched this one, but none did. As he scanned the letters again, he suddenly realized that if the letters were switched around, they spelled out the word _'March'_.

"It's not even March," Ciel muttered bitterly, closing the watch. And he had no idea how it was a 35th day of the month. That was the least of his problems; instead of the time, the pocket watch told the date. Seeing his now perplexed face, the Hatter pointed at the watch, and Ciel opened it as mutely directed.

He laid his black nail atop the 35, only saying, "How many days does March have?"

"Thirty-one."

"Now count four days after that into the next month."

"April 4th?"

"And there you have a date that you're more familiar with," and he snickered to himself.

Ciel was still at a loss; it wasn't the month of April either, at least, if he remembered correctly it wasn't. As usual, nothing made sense, not even at a tea party. Tired of making zero headway at this 'party', Ciel stood up again, leaving the long table without another word.

He stalked over to a gate in front of the table's end, giving one more look to the mad hosts and hostess. The last he saw was both the Hatter and Hare sipping tea and huddled around the pocket watch, whispering to themselves.

"I'll never go _there_ again," he grumbled, letting the silver gate slam behind him, punctuating his irritation. He proceeded to pick through the woods until he noticed a looming tree with what looked like a door camouflaged into its trunk's bark.

Jiggling the doorknob, the door opened and he proceeded through, driven by the fact that his missing butler might have gone through.

Once more, he found himself in a long, long, _long_, high-ceilinged hallway with doors placed _everywhere_. He found himself looking up at the ceiling, a small part of him hoping to see the rabbit hole that he had fallen down.

Instead, he just saw a dimly-lit room with a black and white checkered ceiling. When he glanced to his right, he once again saw the three-legged glass table. This time, the tabletop was bare. Catching on quickly, he grasped the key tied around his neck, slipped it off and went over to the door in the wall, which seemed to have gotten bigger from the last time he had entered the room.

Kneeling down, he picked at at keyhole, finally hearing a _click_ and peered inside before crawling hesitantly into the darkness.

On hands and knees, he crept through the ebony world, and once he had crawled far enough, he was welcomed into the huge universe of gorgeously bright flower-beds and accompanying crystal fountains.


	11. This Place, Circus

The sky had become even darker once he came out on the other side of the door. Luckily, the night was cool and serene, though hauntingly desolate because of the absence of crickets and other nightly critters. By this time, Ciel was growing very tired very fast. His steps were sluggish and he was still unsure about which direction he should be going. For a moment, he forgot what he was looking for in the first place.

He had lost sight of Sebastian back in the forest before attending that insane revel they called a tea party. He had been shocked at the table's unsanitary conditions (though if the Hatter was really the Undertaker, then it made sense, since the Undertaker's shop wasn't very kempt either) the host's dumb riddles, and their stupid ritual of dragging him every which way up and down the table.

His mind swayed back onto Sebastian and his possible whereabouts. The man kept disappearing again and again, and Ciel was becoming so weary chasing him down.

He had abandoned the flowerbeds and fountains quite some time ago− when the sky was still aglow with the tints of dusk. The sky wasn't completely black, yet it was too dark to even see stars. The lack of light made everything seem more lonely, empty, and dismal, and the feeling tugged at his chest. After having been with Sebastian for so long, he couldn't help but feel an unknown emptiness. His trust had been slipping away steadily all day. He hadn't gotten hurt, but in the pit of his stomach there was a feeling of fear that something might happen to him.

He had jumped down the rabbit's hole believing that Sebastian would save him no matter what happened. He wasn't doubting his demon's promise, but he was still slightly worried.

Suddenly, he felt a blanket of light hit his face; up ahead was some sort of light. He was quite relieved, as the sun was no longer on his side and it was getting darker and darker as the last vestiges of light meandered away.

Walking towards the welcomed lustre, a large striped tent came into view. The light spooled out of it like river water, covering the trees and shrubs in a nice, soft glow as he heard a loud chattering coming from the inside.

He took a precariously small step closer, trying to peer in through the tent flap without being seen or seeming like he was rudely poking about. His efforts turned out to be in vain, for a presence abruptly exited the tent, almost ramming right into him, before he had a chance to run and hide in a refuge of nearby shrubs.

"Whoops, sorry 'bout that. Almost didn't see you there."

His stomach plunged pathetically, and he almost felt his knees abandon him altogether out of his terrible luck. Right in front of him was the familiar face of Freckles from the Circus. Even if he didn't have Sebastian's protection, he would have felt more confident if he had had even just a gun to protect himself. But seeing as how mostly everyone (aside from Grell) didn't seem to know him in W o n d e r l a n d, he wasn't worried about Freckles. Lucky for him, he had nothing to worry about, because she didn't even seem to recognize him.

Gasping loudly, she pointed at him exclaiming,

"You're that Alice every one's been talkin' 'bout! Fancy meetin' ya here of all places!" With refulgent blue eyes squeezed shut, she rent the air with laughter. Though Ciel made small attempts to shush her, these too also proved fruitless, for Dagger exited the tent, asking, "What's all the noise?"

He then caught sight of Ciel and donned his own look of excitement. "Hey! It's Alice! Hey, Big Sis, look!" Sooner than he had wished for, the rest of the Circus had joined them outside in the nighttime air. The more talkative ones (Freckles and Dagger) were gabbing excitedly, while Ciel was busy trying to comprehend why they were all alive, let alone come up with a way to escape.

"'Something doesn't seem right here', is what Emily said," Snake murmured, also exiting the tent. He gave Ciel a suspicious once-over, though his eyes didn't move in the slightest. Taking a step closer, he glanced towards one of reptiles that necklaced him, listening to what it had to say as it hissed viciously in Ciel's direction.

"'This person's name isn't Alice', says Wordsworth," the male replied, taking another step closer to Ciel. He then leaned down, their proximity choking, and let the snake wrap itself slowly around Ciel's own neck. He stopped dead, his breath growing stilled and his heart racing like tornado winds.

The reptile looked into his eyes, causing his entire body to stop. Adrenaline rushed through his body and his thoughts were steadily plagued with all that could happen if the snake found out who he _really_ was. He was at a blistering disadvantage; not only because it was seven-against-one, but also because he had nothing to protect himself with anyway. Not even an excuse. However, he held fast to his pride, and refused to cower to them. He was an earl while the rest of them were just orphans performing for a twisted baron.

Baron Kelvin! Ciel instantly remembered the name and the face that came attached to it. If the Circus was still alive and operating in this world, did that mean Baron Kelvin was alive, too, he wondered.

The snake laced itself around Ciel's neck, lifting its own neck and peering again into his blue eye. It dipped its head low, flickering out its forked tongue and inched closer to his face. His chest tightened as he felt the snake's body tighten ever-so-slightly around his neck. His brain shot bullets of dreaded thoughts through his mind, wondering when the reptile would just begin strangling him.

Again, the reptile flexed, tightening its lithe body against Ciel's neck faintly. It guided its trained tongue against his cheek, collecting his scent before it slipped back inside the snake's jaws. The scent went straight through the Jacobson's organ, and Ciel could have sworn (with rising panic) that the snake's eyes widened in malice.

It stayed silent, studying the scent it had just received, then it glanced at Ciel, who flinched, sending the snake into a loud, threatening hiss.

"What do you mean her name's not Alice?" Dagger frowned, planting his hands on his hips and glancing from one to the other. "She looks just like 'er." At that moment, the last member of the Circus exited the tent, glancing around.

"What's going on here?" the self-proclaimed "hired shop manager" glanced around, surveying the large crowd of people with a small face of concern. His purple eyes instantly fell on Ciel, and after a look of surprise passed his face, it melted just as instantly into a cheerful smile.

"Alice! We didn't think you'd be coming to this area of W o n d e r l a n d. How 'bout a welcoming show?"

"Actually, I'm in a hurry," Ciel attempted. Snake had allowed Goethe to be returned to him, and his breathing was now regular. But the circus member hadn't said anything more about Snake's deepening suspicions.

"It'll only take a moment! Besides, you have to see Big Sis's show! We've been practin' all day."

Freckles nodded in agreement, as did the other members, before rushing off to change into her Doll attire. He was rushed into the tent as Joker held the flap open for all of them. "You'll be our guest of honor, Alice."

Ciel was only slightly disturbed as he sat on the leveled spectator benches, looking down at his lap and waiting for the show to start. He was relieved to be sitting down again, but inside he was feeling uneasy. Joker had welcomed him inside the tent without any sort of suspicious feelings, but Ciel remembered clearly the look of surprise he had had before his smile.

Not only that, but if Ciel recalled correctly, his information was still in Joker's tent, disclosed in some kind of envelope labeled, _'Tom, the Piper's Son'_. Joker _should_ be able to recognize him immediately; some striped stockings and blue nail polish shouldn't have been enough of a disguise to disarrange Joker's knowledge of his appearance.

Even so, Ciel felt compelled to find out if Kelvin was still alive and still using the limbs of children for his partner's disgusting hobby. But he hadn't seen Kelvin, nor had he seen the Doctor around at all. Aside from that, he had settled the problem with Sebastian the last time around; it would be much harder to do it alone this time.

_Why are you so dependent on him...? Live and act using your own strength! All he is is a pawn. _

All of a sudden, the lights dimmed and the familiar drumming of the show's onset began.

Dagger stood in the middle of the ring, glinting knives sheathed between eight fingers. Spinning targets lurched up from the ground, circling him at a nauseating speed. Dagger turned this way and that, pretending to decide which target to hit first. On closer inspection, one could see that his eyes were blindfolded with a red cloth.

With swift hands, he released all of the knives like bullets. As expected, each one met its target with a barely audible _thud_. But what _wasn't_ expected, was that after each knife made contact with its mark, they each began to deflate into small, but equally dangerous explosions.

Faster than the eye could see, Wendy and Peter swooped down from their flying trapeze, whisked Dagger up and carried him away from the death trap. They dropped him safely onto the ground, marking the end of his act in the show.

Like shooting stars, the duo provided a deathly exciting show for their audience of one, leaving their act to overlap into Beast's. She sauntered into the ring, leading her tiger Betty slowly. Though daunting, she didn't flick the whip clutched tightly in her fist in the slightest, and she routinely began to pet the tiger slowly and gently. Leading the beast over towards a low platform covered in a wine-red cloth, she directed it to sit, then held up what looked like a large slice of filet mignon.

The tiger's eyes immediately latched onto it, and she swayed the meat around for a bit, allowing the tiger's head to follow her movements. Little by little, it took small steps off of the platform, creeping over to Beast whom was watching her intently, gripping the rod a bit tighter.

Beast slowly lifted her "weapon", motioning the tiger to stand on its back two legs, almost as if it were a dog. Once it did so, somewhat hesitating, she handed over the meat, allowing the tiger to eat. When the beast was finished eating, the two walked out of the ring, clearing the stage for Ciel to look up and see the Princess of the Circus traversing across the tightrope.

In her right hand she held an umbrella, and her left hand was held out to keep her balance. She silently treaded across the paper-thin rope, never faltering. With only a small turn of her head, she glanced towards Ciel, gazing at him with a longing, but unreadable expression.

Once she was halfway across the rope, her umbrella fell from her hands, plummeting through the air and landed daintily next to Jumbo. It seemed as if she had dropped it on accident, but she had made no attempt to get it back. The man turned, picking up the snow white bauble, he removed what looked like a match after unscrewing the tip cup and sliding it out from the crook handle.

With it, he flicked the match against his chest, lighting it, and tossed it into the air, blowing the flames into a circle before catching the match. The phantom flames lingered, midair, before the man took them and placed the flames in his mouth. He repeated the process with sixteen other matches, finally extinguishing them on his palm.

He walked out of the ring, and Joker then took his place, smiling brightly as usual. Jokingly, he loudly announced, "Now we'll need a volunteer from the audience!"

His eyes drifted towards their audience of one, and with a minacious smirk he held out his skeleton hand. "Step right up, Alice."


	12. This Place, Unease

Ciel felt ill at ease as he stepped off of the spectator benches, trailing slowly into the ring. Though he didn't want to, he thought it would be best to take Joker's outstretched hand. As long as he was around the Circus, he'd have to ensure none of them became suspicious of him.

Once he reached the last step, he was swept into the ring and over to its centre, everyone watching him closely.

"Now, Alice, if you don't mind, step right onto that platform o'er there," Joker chimed, releasing Ciel's hand and pointing towards the platform. But instead of the platform, Ciel's eyes first came in contact with the ladder _near_ the platform. It lead straight upwards to the tent's ceiling and stopped at what looked like the rectangular frame and swings from Peter and Wendy's trapeze act.

"What exactly am I going to be used for?" he asked, keeping the suspicion out of his voice as best as possible. At this Joker laughed and replied, "Nothin' much, we're just gonna do an act called 'cradle'."

"Cradle?"

"It's just like trapeze, no reason to worry. Step right up!"

Again, he felt his stomach drop. 'Just like trapeze' meant he'd be hurled through the air. Besides, he was no professional; he couldn't do anything like this. More than anything, he feared whomever he was "cradling" with would drop him.

Looking up again, the first swing was no less than 104 feet (31.6992 meters) high. He turned around again, catching sight of Joker's smile. "Go 'head, Alice."

With an already ragged breath, he set to climbing up the enormous legs of the ladder, eager to get this act finished with so he could run away as soon as it ended.

It seemed like an eternity as he clambered, scratched, and clung to the ladder steps before he finally reached the top. He appeared at the summit after his grueling climb with uneven breath and slumped shoulders, and upon looking down from such a height, he felt dizziness grasp his head for a moment.

Shaking his head, he cleared his vision, and turned around to see Joker already waiting for him on the other side of the tent.

"This is how it works, Alice: I'm the catcher and you're the flyer. We'll both push off at the same time and I'll catch you; then, you'll be passed on to Doll." He pointed towards the other first-tier member who stood diagonal to them both, awaiting further instructions.

After hearing that, Ciel felt even more ill at ease, and was seriously debating whether he should climb back down, or stay where he was at. Luckily for him, Joker's eyes immediately latched onto his apprehensive expression. "Don't worry! We won't let you go!"

"I wonder about that..."

"Alright! Ready?" The two professionals stretched out their arms, entangling their legs in their swings like professional trapeze performers while Ciel did the same, eyeing them both wearily. The three grabbed the poles in which they would push off from, and waited for Joker's cue.

"Go!"

The three pushed off, hurling through the air like bullets. The swings plowed through the air at a brisk pace, surging forward, causing stomachs to jerk ever-so-slightly at the sudden rush. Then, once the swingers reached their heighest point, they'd hurl quickly backwards to the platform frames from which they pushed off from.

Saying nothing at all, Ciel pushed off, keeping his eyes on the swaying ground instead of on his catcher. This didn't do much good for his dizziness, but he didn't bother to correct himself. Before he surged backwards towards his platform again, Joker easily caught hold of his hands mid-air, smiling brightly at him and saying, "See? I told you I wouldn't let you go."

Without another word, he then dropped his hands, passing him on to Doll who also caught him.

With her, they swayed backwards, nauseatingly fast. The room spun and he could definitely feel a headache creeping upon him. Shuting his eyes was the only comfort he recieved, but it only served to pacify him for a moment or two. The next thing that comforted him slightly was Doll's soft voice, murmuring, "You look familiar..."

He glanced upwards at her, eyes wide, waiting for her to explain. "It's not your fault, but... you remind me of someone who did something horrible to us..." At that point, she released his hands, sending him swinging back upwards towards Joker who caught his hands again and pulled him into his chest, twirling upwards again.

At this point, Ciel managed to tangle himself up in his swing. Pressed against Joker's chest, Ciel felt even more precarious and at risk of tumbling to the ground. His own body was uncomfortable, having accidentally coiled in the swing, while one leg wasn't even kept steady _by_ the swing. Joker didn't seem to notice this, and they continued to swing this way and that like a pendulum.

Without warning, Joker airily released Ciel's body, and, without a swing, Ciel plummented through the air, heading straight towards the ground without any one below to catch him. As luck would have it, instead of hitting the ground, he crash-landing on the platform, on his back.

The impact of the fall knocked all of the wind out of him, causing him to squeeze his eyelids shut in pain and wince loudly. At first, the pain was a distant throbbing, then it pulsated through his body, hammering at him and echoing over and over again.

The interior pain doubled over him like a ceaseless wave, and then, it reached his head, causing him to experience quite a distressing headache. For a moment, all he wanted to do was either sleep or sit completely still, but he had to get out of the tent.

Using only willpower, he struggled to sit up, coughing and attempting to steady his breathing. And then, a fierce thunder of pain hit his leg− the exact spot he had gotten poisoned by the saddleback caterpillar. It appeared that while he had been awkwardly tangled in the swing when Joker had last caught him, the swing's metal had dragged itself against his leg when he fell, tearing through the flesh. The wound wasn't bleeding profusely, but the pain was agonizing.

Combined with the throbbing and ache of his headache, he felt like he wanted to die right then and there. He sat up straight, only to tumble back over, onto his back with a groan. The last thing he heard was Doll's concerned yelling of "Alice" before he dozed off. _

Awkwardly enough, he awoke, sitting straight up in a bed, beads of sweat brimming on his forehead. He surveyed the area: another tent. He recognized this tent, too, it had been the one that he was taken to when he had had his asthma attack.

Ciel surveyed himself, seeing that he _looked_ no different from when he had fallen unconscious. Luckily, the headache was faint and ebbing away quickly, and his breathing was regular and controlled. Looking down at his leg, he saw the wound had been cleaned, but otherwise had no bandage or wrapping.

He propped himself up on his palms, muscles aching and breaking free of their stiffness. In his peripheral vision, he caught sight of Doll and Joker.

"So sorry 'bout that, Alice! You got knocked out, but we got the Doc to check you out before he turned in for the night."

Joker's words made him stop cold. The Doctor was still alive? That _must_ mean that Kelvin was as well. If the Doctor had recognized him when he treated his unconscious body, he might have snuck off to alert Kelvin. His cover was being chipped away every second he stayed there.

Ripping off the blankets, he tore past them and headed for the exit of the tent flap, only to have his arm grabbed and fiercely yanked back by Doll.

"Where're you going? Don't you wanna stay here for the night and recoup?"

"We have plenty o' room, no worries there," Joker added, concern painted across his face.

"I'll be fine on my own," Ciel interrupted, tugging his arm away. "I can't stay; I'm looking for someone at the moment." He only allowed an, "oh" from the other two as he rushed out of the tent and down the pathway.

He had almost made it to the woods before he rammed into something solid. His eyes wandered upwards and Snake looked down at him, his expression unreadable. His gaze then wandered to the snake that was coiled around his neck, hissing at him once more.

Without giving a chance for Snake to speak, Ciel ran around him and back near the woods, only stopping when he was safely situated far away from Snake and the circus tents.

But, like a broken record, the hisses of the snake replayed itself over and over in his head.


	13. This Place, Night

Ciel crept through the trees, fatigued beyond belief. One arm was used to fend off draping leaves while the other clutched his injured leg. His limp had become exceedingly worse since he entered the area. While he had been with the Circus, night had fallen over Wonderland. Almost impossible to see, a wince and a curse escaped his lips more than once as he overstepped regions again and again, accidentally scrapping his leg against the sharp and treacherous bark. He hadn't received enough sleep in the tent, and his eyes were getting as heavy as sandbags. He willed himself to stay awake, however, because his stomach had become fierce and persistant with its growling.

Staring deep into the baleful darkness, he continued forward, so tired he didn't even care about where he was going anymore.

Eventually, his idle and undirected journey lead him to a familiar gate and shrubs. Looking upwards with a long-since enervated eye, he once again saw the messy table of the Hatter and Hare. He welcomed himself to a seat at the end of the table to rest, allowing his forehead to slam against the table's edge with a loud groan.

He sighed, closing his eyes and placing one hand atop the other. As soon as he did so, lightning fast realization struck him and, now (temporarily) wide awake, he jumped to his feet. Turning this way and that, he searched frantically for his beautifully cursed family heirloom. He searched his apron pockets, then the pockets of his pants, a frown drawning a steep line of discouragement across his features.

Absently, a hand ghosted over his vacant thumb, trying to coax his mind to believe the blue diamond was still occupying his finger. His coaxing didn't help, though, and he eventually stopped lying to himself, sat back in his chair and sighed again.

The table was all but empty, and every last dish, teacup, and pastry was wiped clean from the surface, zero evidence being left. The Hatter and the Hare were also no where to be seen, and sitting alone at the table with a faint light above him (whose origin he couldn't pinpoint) plagued at the back of his mind.

_'I've always been alone'_, he told himself, his body mentally crouched into a fortress of knees drawing to his chest, _'So why is it that I feel sick?' _

His stomach did a somersault just then, jolting him out of his heartsick thoughts and replacing it with thoughts of his much-needed sustenance. Over and over, with a teasing yet desperate tone, his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten practically anything since breakfast (which had been at 9:30 that morning) and also taunted him with the fact that he hadn't had any water in hours, either. The last he had guessed the time had been 6 evening− when the Hatter had mentioned 'high tea' (_'which takes place between'5 and 6pm',_ he told himself knowingly), and he had been at the party for at least an hour, and then in the Circus tent for at least two hours.

Judging by that (if the Hatter really was correct when he said 'high tea'), then it had been approximately twelve hours since breakfast, and since then, Ciel had snacked on nibbles of cake, sips of a drink that tasted of cherry tart, custard, pineapple, roast turkey, toffee, and buttered toast, and small tastes of mushrooms.

He willed himself to stand up again, grumbling that it wouldn't do him any good to just sit there and dream of food. With the gait comparable to that of a drunken man's, Ciel stumbled off into the mouth of the darkened woods once again, easily being admitted into the hands of any unknown monster that might have been lying in wait.

Like paint dribbling off a canvas, Wonderland's colorful cheer and happiness trickled down the atmosphere's canvas and into a world of smothering blackness. A barely noticable green light lit the barely noticible path, as Ciel dragged himself through the suffocating yet isolating bundle of trees. The green light only provided the minimum amount of visual comfort as it lapped across the bottom of the hard tree bark, bathing the ugly, hunchbacked and distorted trees in a vauge, haunting glow.

The light's scarcity began to double, then triple the farther Ciel carried on, and the blackness that closed in on him did nothing for his thoughts at the moment. A tidal wave of emotions swept over him, from fear, to loneliness, to hunger, to weakness, to self-hate. The tornado swept back at him and again and again, and only died when the last flicker of green light did and he was left alone.

Trusting only his steps, he plodded onwards in now complete darkness, only lifting his head when he noticed something up ahead.

Further on, enormous trees bent downwards, shrouding an open area so much it almost looked like the opening to a cave. Bursting out of the cave were flickerings of light. With semi-renewed hope, he dashed over to the "cave", praying that something good or beneficial was there. Without any sort of thought or hesitation, he walked into the "cave"'s mouth, peeking around, now slightly alert of what might be waiting.

Instead, he was met with over a million glowing insects.

His mouth dropped open in amazement as millions of the insects dazzled the world with their tealish-blue glow. Fluttering this way and that, they looked as if they pirouetted around the area, absently lighting the world while simultaneously performing their own lightshow. He had never seen so many of them.

"Fireflies...?"

"Actually, we're called iceflies."

The small voice had been barely audible, but it was undoubtedly one of the masses of 'iceflies' that had spoken. Saying nothing more, they continued to dance, illuminating the serene breeze of night air.

"They're pretty, aren't they?"

Taken off guard for only a moment by the entrance of a new voice, Ciel turned around, using the light of the insects to see whom he had been chasing all this time, standing right in front of him.

"Sebas− mean, Mr. White Rabbit." He hadn't (and refused to) take a liking to calling Sebastian (or at least, someone who _looked_ and _sounded_ like Sebastian) 'mister', but at this point, he wasn't even sure if the person in front of him was Sebastian any more. Until he knew for sure, 'Mr. White Rabbit' would have to do.

"They do enjoy it when others dance alongside them," the 'White Rabbit' chanced, slight seduction and mischievousness seeping into his voice as he glanced at Ciel from the corner of his eye. His familiar cat-like grin materialized on his lips before he offered Ciel his hand.

Knowing exactly where this was going, the other backed up slightly, shaking his head. "I don't really..."

"You must know some kind of dance," the man pressed, taking Ciel's hand gently into his own. The other half-glared up at him, averting his sapphire gaze before grumbling, "Only parts of the Vienna Waltz," (he made sure to purposely leave out that he had learned only to _lead_ in the Vienna Waltz, and when it came to learning the female dancing part for infiltration to the Viscount's party, he had failed. Miserably.)

"Then we shall do the Vienna Waltz," the male responded, taking Ciel's hand in his and lifting it. "All you must do is follow my lead and everything shall be fine."

_This has to be him. No one else acts like this._

The taller male then placed Ciel's hand expertly on his own shoulder (though it was a bit hard to reach) and placed his own hand on Ciel's side. With a wicked smile and teasing tone, he replied, "Please do not worry, Miss Alice; I will hold your waist sturdy."

_He's teasing me as usual; this has to be him_, Ciel thought, shooting a bitter glare at the other male. "Damn you, stupid coquet."

Other than a wider smile, the taller man responded no other way to the comment. "I trust that you know that the Vienna Waltz usually only consists of rotary movements: natural, which is clockwise, and reverse, which is counter-clockwise?"

"Mhh..." was Ciel's only response as he tightened his grip on the taller man's coat. The other man then pulled him towards his chest, reestablishing his gentle hold on the other's smaller hand. Without another word, the two swept off at the same time, turning in unison.

"Here we change steps," the black-clad dancer announced once they finished another turn, and they did so. The 'iceflies' (as they liked to call themselves) also seemed to dance alongside them, literally flying circles around them.

Something about this moment made Ciel think of one of Elizabeth's old fairytale books. A princess and her prince twirling circles across a forested dancefloor lit only by the light of "iceflies". More than anything else, this was honestly lame. The thought made him mentally scold himself, thinking that a person of his status shouldn't by dancing in a place like this. Especially dancing with a rabbit-eared man that resembled his butler of all people!

On more than one occasion, he mistook a moment for a natural turn with a reverse and nearly toppled over himself, and, as he usually did when dancing, kicked the other man in the shin and stepped on his foot on several occasions.

By the closure of their nocturnal waltz, Ciel was so exhausted he collided his shoulder to a nearby tree and tumbled to the ground, wanting sleep more than anything else in the world (not counting food, considering that he was hungry beyond comparison at that point), resting his temple against the bark and shutting his eyes.

His dance partner also approached the tree, seating himself on the ground near the boy. Behind him, Ciel heard clanging and splashing sounds but only glanced at what the other was doing when he felt a hand touch his arm. The man offered him a cup from which steam was coming from, and Ciel slowly took it, trusting his nose to evaluate the substance.

"Devonshire tea?"

"Would you like a scone as well?"

He offered a small nod and the black-clad man turned around and turned back holding out a currant scone.

Taking it, Ciel greedily devoured it in a matter of seconds, quickly gulping down the tea almost as if it were water right after. The other male watched with a smirk, pouring more tea into the cup as soon as he finished.

When he downed the second cup, the man offered him another scone, which he downed just as quickly. With a yawn, he stretched, laying down on the grass, his back still to the White Rabbit whom had his back against the tree, putting away all of the tea supplies.

"Mr White Rabbit," he mumbled in his sleep, folding his body closer to himself and hiding his face in the grass. "Stay by my side until morning."

He fell into sleep, surprisingly not caring in the least that he was sleeping on the ground. Re-donning his smile, the black-clad man wrapped one arm around the other's waist, pulling him slightly closer to provide a small amount of warmth.

"Yes, My Lord."


	14. This Place, Rose

Ciel expected to awaken to the smell of fresh buttered crumpets, steamed herring, and mild Chai tea. He expected to see his butler's torso, pulling apart the curtains to expose yet another sun-drenched day. He expected to be escorted to his study at three minutes past ten, first met by Miss Bright then Miss Rodkin. He expected an afternoon snack of madelines and silver needle tea. He expected a hot, refreshing bath late in the afternoon. And once the hour reached eleven, he expected his butler to press the covers to his neck, pat them down, blow out the candle, and close the door, leaving him to his dreams. The events played out in his mind perfectly, not a single pieces missing.

But once he opened his eyes, he was met with towering trees of varying hues, literal horseflies, and flowers with eyes that hid their faces each time he returned their glances.

He awoke with a certain stiffness in his back that he immediately set to stretching out, yawning loudly and reaching his hands towards the sky. After that, he searched around, his eye drinking in the sight of the forest in early morning. Seeing no one there, he turned back towards the tree where he had last seen the 'white rabbit', only to see he was all to himself.

Mostly.

"I thought I told him to stay here until morning," he growled, clicking his tongue with a judgmental glare.

"And he did."

Again, he was caught off guard by the new voice and glanced upwards. Perched on the tree behind him was Grell, swishing his cat tail and twitching his ears. Rolled out across his face was that viciously creepy smirk again.

"As odd as it sounds, 6 am draws morning in Wonderland. Now, if you were to say, 'stay by my side until I awake' that would have been a different story," the redhead explained sarcastically, nonchalantly. He leapt from the tree, propping his body against it and casually examining the tips of his fingers, even though they were gloved.

"You're really something, aren't you. Sticking it out here all night without your knight. But I suppose that aside from the Queen, nothing here is much of a threat." He continued to scrutinize his gloved hands, green eyes dull in boredom. He snuck a glance at Ciel, his frown turning into a smile as he walked over towards him, disappearing once he got within four feet of him and reappearing on the opposite side to take the boy by surprise.

"You _have_ met her, haven't you?" Grell cooed, revealing his glinting jaws before rearing his head back and straightening up. With a certain emerald glint, he watched Ciel's unreadable expression closely, hands planted against his hips.

"The Queen?" Just as Ciel said this, an array of squawking, squeaking, and crowing rent the skies. Charging straight towards them was the group of birds (lead by the mouse) that Ciel had met during the caucus race.

Grell easily disappeared, avoiding getting trampled, and reappeared on the tree, watching all of them with a slightly curious look. The other animals gathered around Ciel, all of them making ear-splitting noises. To his anger, the duck found itself into his lap.

"Run! Run away! She's-she's coming! She's here!" they all screamed in unison, trampling Ciel, throwing him this way and that way, and yelling, squawking, screaming, and jumping all around him and over him. Not in the mood for something like that this early, Ciel reached over and snagged the duck's neck, making sure to tighten his grip when it resisted.

"Who are you talking about?" in essence, this was a question, but it sounded more like a threat.

"_Her_," the duck insisted, waving around its wings. "You know, _her_."

Tightening his grip, Ciel grumbled, "_No_, I don't know '_her_'." His was interrupted again, but this time it was because he noticed something. In no time at all, he was stepping on the duck's neck, fiercely screaming at it to return his precious ring.

"He didn't take it!" the mouse called, rushing to the duck's rescue. "_She_ did. And she's on her way over here." With that, the other animals broke out into a fit of screams and ran away, leaving the two with their thoughts.

"What was that all about?" the redhead asked, looking down at Ciel with just as much confusion as the blue-haired boy had. In response, Ciel only shrugged, and sat back down, sighing loudly. He drew his knees up to his chest, staring at his ringless finger and injured leg simultaneously.

At that point, Grell chose to disappear and reappear near him, peering over his leg, eyes glittering with devilish intent. "Ooh, what's this?"

Ciel met the other's gaze with a sapphire glare, shoving the other's hovering hand away from him. "I just got bit by a caterpillar. Nothing more than that."

Grell, however, didn't believe a word of it, and his smirk widened. "Of course, you're not as delicious as Sebastian; well, you don't even compare, but I love the look of that wound... It has a nice carmine-like color," he crooned, silk voice dripping with morbid mirth as he removed his gloves and ran his own fingers against the deep cut.

"This looks like more than just a caterpillar bite. You got grazed by something, didn't you? A knife? A shard of glass? Wait, don't tell me, metal?"

With a pitiful nod from Ciel, Grell's smile grew with triumph. "Looks like I have to take back what I said earlier then. You really can't do anything without Sebastian, can you?"

"I can!"

"I bet if you were the only person here and you got bit you wouldn't know what to do," he teased, pulling his glove back over his palm and tightening it. "Anyway, if you're looking for the Queen's palace, I can show you a short cut."

A scowl rolled across Ciel's face as he watched Grell's back, calling, "Who said I wanted to go to the Queen's palace?"

Stopping short, Grell turned around, sharp-teeth glinting. "Well, I heard she was having a party, and you have to go anyway. She invited you." He pulled from his sleeve one of the extravagant envelopes, punctuating his sentence when he tossed it.

Ripping the letter open proved to be a demanding task, but Ciel managed, and pulled out a heavily-perfumed, pale colored paper that read:

_Dearest, _

_You are cordially invited for a tea at the table of hearts and the celebration that will follow. Make sure to wear your nicest clothes and bring a gift for your Queen. _

_Sincerely, the Queen of Hearts_

Frowning at the letter's brevity, Ciel slipped it back between the envelope's flaps, grumbling that he didn't really want to attend a party. Seeing as how the tea party and the circus show had all been too strange for his tastes, he had no wish to join the Queen for her gathering.

"It'd be best if you attended," the shinigami crowed, holding out his palm, expecting Ciel to hand him something. After Ciel gave him a blank look, Grell motioned towards the tree bark, which had a doorknob and keyhole much like the tree he had seen before. "I heard Sebastian was going to the party," Grell teased, taking hold of Ciel's key necklace and unlatching the door, opening it wide enough for Ciel to walk through.

However, Ciel wasn't amused with his taunts. "I'm not looking for Sebastian anymore; I want to go home." With a snort, Grell replied with, "I'm sure you'll find a way to that too if you attend the party. Someone's bound to know how to get back."

Ciel walked into the tree, a strong breeze captured him as he did so. But instead of going all the way in, he turned towards Grell, countering, "After you finish work here, how are you going to return back?" Unsuspecting of that question, Grell took a moment to think, saying, "Oh, Will's going to come and get me."

"He's here too?"

"Mhh-hmm." And with nothing more, Grell closed the door behind Ciel, leaving him without any source of light. With a grunt, Ciel slid to the ground, again crawling on all-fours, unsure of what he was to be looking for. He felt his hands along the hardened bark, groping for some kind of window or latch. Finally, his fingers brushed against a doorknob, and he grabbed his key necklace, ready to take it off and begin unlocking this door.

Lucky for him, the door was already unlocked, and all he had to do was push his way through. The door lead to another garden; however, this one was gigantic. It was impossible not to catch sight of a large rose tree near the entrance. The tree brimmed with roses, but some were white while others were dripping blood. Upon closer inspection, one could see that it wasn't blood but instead was paint. And Ciel's own three servants (though they looked more like playing cards) were painting each bud and petal, laughing and humming to themselves.

"I brought more paint!" Maylene (or at least a card who looked like her) screeched, her proof being the three large buckets huddled in her arms. Before she even bothered to reach her two helpers, though, she tripped over her own feet, staining the grass in vermilion.

"Watch it with that! We don't want Her Majesty to know we're painting these!" the card that resembled Bardroy scolded, peering down at the other from a ladder. With that, he slabbed on another coating to an already drenched rose, then leapt off the ladder and moved it to the other side.

The card that resembled Finnian was already coating that side, humming a jubilant melody as he painted.

Not very curious but more confused than anything else, Ciel made his way past the hedge and stood before them, but far enough to hear them better now. They certainly _looked_ like his servants, and they certainly _acted_ like his servants, but after all that had occurred in the past two days, he still was unsure.

"Augh! Watch it! You're hitting me with paint!" Bardroy called to Finnian who shrunk back and whimpered a, "Sorry!"

At that point, Ciel had come even closer and saw that Finni, Bardroy, and Maylene all had their normal heads, but had the bodies of playing cards. Each card bore a different suit: Maylene was a diamond, Finnian was a club, and Bardroy was a spade. Aside from that, they also had the numbers 5, 2, and 7 printed on them.

In the next moment, their eyes chanced upon Ciel, and they all let out a loud gasp. Glancing from them to the rose tree, Ciel inquired, "What are you doing?" in a none-so-gentle voice.

With timidly exchanged looks, Finni piped up with, "Well, this was supposed to be a red rose tree, but we accidentally planted a white rose tree." He gave a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his neck as if it were sore. Ciel could only facepalm at this, grumbling, "This is just like you..."

"Now, we're hurrying to paint the roses red," Bardroy hasted.

"Before the Queen returns," Maylene finished.

And at that moment, as if on cue, a loud call of, "The Queen! It's the Queen!" was heard throughout the vast garden of red. Scrambling like ants, the three 'cards' flattened themselves, face-down, on the ground, awaiting their Queen's appearance.

Ciel, however, didn't see anyone that looked like a queen. He only saw ten soldiers (whom he noticed looked like members of the Scotland Yard) carrying clubs, and ten courtiers (who looked like Shinigami, minus Grell and William) that were ornamented with diamonds, walking two by two.

Following them was William, and once he appeared, there were hushed whispers of, "It's the Knave of Hearts!" He followed behind the others, decked out in a uniform Ciel had never seen him in: a bright red two-piece suit, a pink tie dotted with red hearts, and his regular black dress shoes. Pinned to his chest was a badge that read: "_Knave of Hearts_", and in his hand he even held a new death scythe, dotted with pink hearts. It made him seem so much less menacing...

He eyed Ciel, giving him nothing more than a long, hard glance before redirecting his eyes ahead again, following the others.

At long last, the proclamation of the Queen's _true_ appearance rang through the garden's vastness. Stepping down from a heart-shaped carriage was the Queen of Hearts, a woman that held the spitting image of Angelina Durless.

With his jaw dropped wide open, Ciel stifled a gasp. He didn't even seem to notice Grell appear next to him, toothily grinning.

"I told you that you'd want to attend."


	15. This Place, Games

"Don't tell me _she's_ the one you've come here to kill?" Ciel shrieked, turning around rapidly after hearing that. Up until then, he had stood stock-still, the chorus of nightmarish noises from that night replaying on a record of their own. After Madam Red's death, he had admit it to no one (not even to Sebastian) about the steady nightmares he had had for the next few days.

She had been a horrid sight after her death, and he had seen her up close, he had touched her dead body, and he had closed her dead eyes. What a terror it was to see his once smiling, once joking, once loving aunt on the ground, caked in her own blood, a gash blown right through her bosom, shearing through her flesh and ripping it.

Her eyes were open wide, frozen that way forever. She looked skewered and broken, but he had mustered enough strength that night to ensure that his knees didn't fall weak under him. He had made it absolutely certain that he didn't puke at such a sight. The part of his mind that he had buried (or so he thought) unearthed itself slowly yet surely each time he met face-to-face with Grell Sutcliff. This small piece of him wished the worst on the shinigami. It despised him for taking one more person that he held dear away from him.

At times this small piece of him wished that Sebastian _would_ kill Grell one day. And this small piece had no qualms about wanting Grell to taste some of the pains that his aunt might have felt in the last brief moments of her life. Regrettably, the larger, more rational side of him knew that pain was something Grell adored. True, he was no masochist, but it seemed almost impossible to put Grell out of his high spirits. Except for maybe when Sebastian didn't return his affections... But even then, Ciel thought, Grell had an odd way of defining 'love'. He had proclaimed something along the lines of: "animosity was all part of the spice in affection after all".

Luckily, to ease his nerves more than anything, Grell waved a hand at him, saying, "No, she's not my target. It'd be a bore to reap twice."

"Then why is she here? Why is she alive?"

"I can't answer that, maybe Will can." With that Grell evaporated into nonexistence yet again, and the cavalcade continued. It took quite a while before the parade screeched to a halt, opposite of Ciel and the 'cards' that were still behind him, heads down.

The Queen (and her entourage) all came to a stop once they saw Ciel standing there, seeming as if he was waiting to see the Queen face-to-face. With a conceited glare, she stuck up her nose, pointed her heart scepter and called, "Who is this?" to anyone who would answer.

_I was invited to _her_ party and she doesn't even know who was on _her_ guest list._

A hush went over everyone in the garden as well as all of the courtiers and cards, and the only voice that dared to speak was one that sounded strangely familiar.

"You may call her Alice, Your Majesty." Even though the voice had said 'Your Majesty' as a sign of respect, there was something in that voice that taunted the sovereign's title. Some element in the core of his speech that showed no admiration for the Queen of Hearts whatsoever.

_He's here again..._ Ciel thought, searching for the telltale rabbit ears through the colors of people. His search was cut off when he felt the Queen's hot breath against his face and felt his chin lifted upwards by her scepter.

Her scarlet eyes bore into his own, long and hard, and after such a long time, she broke into a smile, exclaiming, "What a cutie! I'm glad that you're here for the party~! Alice, was it? Come, come along. Do you play English billiards at all?"

Billiards had been one of Madam Red's favorite games...

"Yes, I do, but, aren't we supposed to be having tea?" Ciel interjected, having his arm being pulled by two of the Ace cards that also lead the way. His head was faced backwards as he was jerked, searching for the 'White Rabbit' through the crowds.

"Nonsense! Billiards first, tea later. All ways are my way and if you don't like it we'll cut off your head~!" She had said this with a joyful sing-song tune in her voice, and burst into laughter, walking up the steps and into the heart-shaped palace. _

The Queen's outfit was one thing, but her palace was another. Just as the center-front of her dress was designed with vertical black and white stripes, the floor was tiled in the same way. It was littered by scarlet rose petals and some of what looked like blood stains and/or wine stains. The curtains were dark red, so when the sun hit the drapery, it painted a red glare against the black chamber walls. The chandelier in the main hall was breathtaking, as it was in the shape of a heart with smaller hearts made of ruby hanging down from it.

Every few feet down the hall, there were miniature three-legged tables, some heart-shaped others round. Each offered up a scrumptious treat (that of course read 'Eat Me' or 'Drink Me') to whomever were to walk by. However, whomever saw the table (unless they were interested in the morbid style of the Queen of Hearts) would quickly be deprived of their appetite seeing as how each treat was in a bowl that was placed in the open mouths of a once-living severed head.

The Queen would always wave her hand towards a table, airily musing, "Take one if you wish."

Ciel never took one.

At last, after twenty flights of stairs (where the Queen was carried on her cushion by a pair of cards) and mile-long hallways, they arrived at the dimly lit game room where the dark green billiards table stood in the middle. The cue sticks and billiard balls lay haphazardly around the surface of the table, though they were quickly gathered and made presentable by the cards and courtiers that had followed them inside.

With another wave of her hand, she only said, "String," before taking up her own cue stick, waiting for Ciel to go first. Ciel approached the table, taking up the other cue stick, but no sooner had he done this had he felt a jerk and a twitch in his hands.

With a loud gasp, he all but dropped the cue stick, seeing as how the stick now looked like a flamingo.

He received a dirty look from the Queen as she barked, "Are you going to string or shall I cut off your head?"

Flashing her a brief but dirty look of his own, he straightened the flamingo, holding it almost like one would a baseball bat. He stalked over to the side of the table, straightened out his stick even more and eyed the ball before knocking it with the animal's beak.

The ball (which he noticed looked like a hedgehog) swiftly lolled down the table, expertly scrambling round the surface and obviously trying to avoid the baulk cushion the best it could. After tripping over itself, it landed with a _thud_ against the side of the billiards table, not even close to the baulk cushion.

With a half-stiffled snicker, the Queen walked forward, straightening her own flamingo. With a focused eye, she shot her hedgehog ball around the table. Being under the Queen's watchful eye made the animal scramble about almost as if it were being chased, attempting to meet the baulk cushion as close as it could.

Eventually, the hedgehog skidded across the table, halting very near the baulk cushion.

Seeing as how her 'ball' was the closest, the Queen clapped her hands, purring, "That decided it! _I'll_ break."

At these words, the cards and courtiers gathered the hedgehogs in a triangular-shape, standing back, waiting for the Queen's shot that would break them apart. Scared for their lives, but doing nothing much about it, the hedgehogs only scrunched together, hoping that the Queen wouldn't actually hit them.

She adjusted her flamingo, then began walking every which way, trying to decide which angle to send her shot from. She walked to the right side of the table, then the left, then the right again, then down the back, then left− practically running Ciel over with the bustle under her skirts.

Ciel, already irritated by her obviously false victory, placed an elbow on the table, letting his forehead fall in his palm, grousing, "Just _move_." Like a rifle, the Queen's eyes attached to him, glaring viciously in his direction as she lifted his chin with her cue stick's beak, "Excuse me, what was _that_, hmm?"

Even though she spoke with acid in her voice, Ciel wasn't in the least afraid of her. He pushed the flamingo away, his glower level with hers. "I said−"

His complaint was cut off when he felt a blade ghost over his back. Turning his neck around slightly, he espied the crimson lance held by one of the cards. The card held the lance straight, his hands not trembling in the least. Ciel sensed no hesitation coming from him, so he decided it would be best to keep his mouth shut, for now at least.

"Nothing," he grumbled, averting his gaze to his shoes. With renewed egocentricity, the Queen bent over again, leaning over the table and shooting the ball off towards the others. Without the ball even grazing the hedgehogs, they all scrambled into different directions.

Smiling, she moved aside, offering Ciel a turn. He watched her wearily, walking over to stand behind the baulk line.

One time after another, the Queen's hedgehog balls made sure to collide with all of the ones Ciel had set up, increasing her score steadily. In contrast to Ciel (who knew that he played a better game of billiards than Madam Red on any day) who was losing horribly. He had been told so many times by Lau and others that by cheating his way through games (which he did do at times) would come back to haunt him someday.

He had scarcely believed them.

At times he cheated to gain the upper hand, and it was very rare that his opponent even recognized it, but usually, when it came to cards or chess, all he had to do was sit back and watch his opponent, downsizing them with only his eyes as they wallowed in their misery into a state of defeat. Other times, when he didn't want the game to end so quickly, he falsely encouraged his opponent, using his perfect, fake, reassuring smile. He admitted it was fun to crush the opponent after gaining their trust. It made the game much more amusing.

In this situation, however, it was impossible to cheat under the watchful eyes of the courtiers and cards.

Snapping out of his slight daze, he glanced towards the table in time to see the Queen strike one of his hedgehogs instead of her own.

"Foul," he called, reassured only slightly that the Queen could have made such a dumb mistake. Even though it wasn't much, he had just earned two points for her blunder. However, she just simply waved him off, saying, "That wasn't a foul, that ball is mine."

"It isn't. On my last turn I struck that ball."

He felt that ghostly feeling against his back again, and he was quick to straighten up. The presence of the weapon behind him made the shivers that ran down his spine much more erratic. They twinged to the point where he had to place his own palms on his back, coaxing the feeling out of his system.

The Queen hit the ball across the table. Calm once more, she attempted conversation with him, asking, "So, where do you come from?"

"London, England." His reply was terse.

She stopped short, blinking in confusion. "London?" She thought a while, donning a look as if she were searching through her brain for a memory that contained the name 'London'. She frowned, peering at him again, repeating, "London?" in a questionable voice.

With a sigh, Ciel decided not even she would be able to help him get home if she didn't even recognize the name of the capital.

"My mistake, I meant to say DoDosburg," the boy substituted. At this, the Queen easily understood and clapped her hands. "Ahh, I remember taking over that country. It was disgusting, covered with the ugly, little creatures. Ugh!"

Her last shot marked the end of the unfair game between them, and it ended with a win for the Queen. The cards and courtiers clapped and applauded thunderously for her victory, as she bowed and basked in the glory of her falseness. Ciel simply rolled his eyes and headed for the door's exit. Before he could unlatch the door, his arm was seized by a courtier.

"Where are you off to so soon?" the red woman inquired, amusement thickly sliced into her voice. "You did come for the party and tea, did you not? But..." she paused, looking him over as she walked over to him. She proceeded to poke, prod, and tug at his jumper/overall-esque outfit, her lips dipping into a scowl of disapproval.

"You can't wear that to a party; I won't allow you to." She turned to the cards. "Lead the dear down the hall to get a more presentable outfit. _Now_." And like a dog on a leash, they practically yanked Ciel down the long halls, into a room, and stood him on a little dais.

"Wait here," the one who had lead him there gruffly replied, and then egressed the room, leaving Ciel standing in from of three glaring mirrors. Once he was sure that the card's footsteps had completely disappeared, he leapt from the podium, dashing out of his room and down the halls. He tried his best to lighten the soft clicking of his heels against the marble, but his attempts proved futile.

He ran towards where he thought they had entered the castle, but instead was met with a flight of stairs he had never seen before. He turned in the other direction, but saw the same thing. Deciding there was no other place to go, he sped up the original flight of red stairs, down into another hallway, and soon noticed he was lost.


	16. This Place, Waltz

The very instant he reached the top of the new pair of stairs, a vicious scream of, "OFF WITH HIS HEAD!" literally shook the walls of the palace. He crept down the hallways, in the opposite direction of the Queen's voice, trying to soften his laborious breathing from his previous sprint.

As he sidled the vestibule, the sound of rusty skidding alarmed him. Ducking behind a wall, he looked up just in time to see the card-man that had led him to the dais being dragged across the floor by two others who were dressed as executioners. The Queen of Hearts followed behind them, scolding, "I can't believe you let her get away. Idiot!"

The moment the two were out of earshot and eyesight, Ciel snuck out from behind the dark wall, only to be yanked backwards (_Damn this happens far too much here, _he allowed himself to think) suddenly, a hand clamped halfway over his mouth. He struggled for a moment, falling into the warm chest of someone, before he felt the 'assailant's' other hand cup his cheek, caressing it for a moment, coaxing the reeling panic to ebb out of his stomach.

Though his mind told him to do differently, his body relaxed, and once the assailant recognized this, he released Ciel, allowing him to turn around, only to have his panic rise again and bubble to the surface of his brain. Standing before him was the Viscount of Druitt, the only contrast to his regular appearance was that he had a large leathery-domed shell attached to his back.

"Why, Miss Alice, it's quite rude to be poking about in the homes of others," he said, his tone pleasant but the intentional direction of his hand wasn't so much. As he spoke, the man busied himself with stroking Ciel's arm.

"I'm not poking about, I'm try to find a way out."

"All ways are the Queen's ways," the Viscount-looking creature replied, smiling nobly as if he were reciting a proverb or phrase. "If you wish to know _her_ way out, you should ask her. She gives the best advice, you know."

"Advice? I wouldn't call it that," Ciel grit out, turning on his heel then. He traipsed the marble floors, steadily becoming more and more agitated as he heard the man's footsteps keeping up with his own. He chanced a look at the man, catching his vaguely naughty smirk and quickly turned back around with a shudder.

"Certainly," he piped up again, the smile almost palpable in his voice, "There's a piece of advice for every situation. I've heard from the Duchess herself −who is also adroit at giving advice− various morsels of knowledge that have broadened my horizons more than any other person by far. For instance, 'take care of the sense, and the sounds will take care of themselves,' is what she told me only yesterday."

The thought of a womanizer like the Viscount of Druitt spending time with someone who resembled his cousin made Ciel inwardly gag and shudder. Regardless, he kept his mouth shut and continued trying to unlock various doors and peer through story-high windows.

"Just this morning, in fact, I heard a very useful piece of advice from Her Grace: 'Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise.'"

Ciel frowned at the thought, mentally holding his head as he tried to forget all of the riddles and paradoxes he had endured the two days. His pace quickened as he decided to change the subject, lest the man continue with the so called 'morals of knowledge'.

"Where did you last see the Duchess, Mister...?"

"Mock Turtle," the man replied, filling in the blank with a grin. "I last saw her in custody; the Queen was going to have her executed."

"She was what?"

"No worries, she was released with the choice of either removing herself or her head from the Palace of Hearts. She most likely returned home."

Ciel didn't respond after that, for he had been so engrossed in listening to the Mock Turtle's tale of what happened to the Duchess as he simultaneously descended a flight of stairs that he had overstepped a stair and skidding down the stairwell, landing with a painful shriek on the floor.

He cursed his stupidity and sat up, rubbing at the still-tender injury on his leg. It hadn't been aching as much when he had awoke, but now that he had provoked it (so to speak) once more, the throbbing feeling returned full-force.

"Dear, are you all right?" the Mock Turtle inquired, lifting him up by his arm. After being brought to his feet, Ciel scrambled to cover up the injury, falsely reassuring the Turtle that it was just a little blunder. He had barely gotten the words out of his mouth before an eruption of cheerful voices came from beyond.

Ciel followed the noise (the Turtle unfailing to follow after him) and was lead to a large crystal ballroom brimming with cards, people, and the Queen. The sight of the woman was enough to make him back away, deciding that even though he had been invited to the party, he wanted no business in this room and it would be best to take that opportunity to find a way to escape the palace.

To his anger, however, the Mock Turtle ushered him into the room, taking his hand and steering him through the dancing bodies to the centre of the room. Seeing where this was going, Ciel's stomach sank again, sensing that he would most definitely make a fool of himself in this situation.

"You shan't leave just yet, Miss Alice, there's still lots more to be done." And with that, the two began the ever-so-familiar rotary steps, natural and reverse of the Vienna Waltz.

"I'm trying to leave the Palace," Ciel attempted, just narrowly missing stepping on the Mock Turtle's foot, "Is there any exit that _you_ know of?"

The Mock Turtle donned a thoughtful look uttering slowly, "I believe there's a way out beyond the drawbridge..."

Ciel leapt at the opportunity, "And where's the drawbridge?"

"Beyond the Queen's personal rose garden."

"And how am I to reach there?"

"You aren't. That area is the Queen's own private garden. Anyone who treads that ground without permission gets beheaded." The Mock Turtle had such an odd pleasantness in his voice that made Ciel feel ill at ease again.

Dropping the subject, the Mock Turtle inquired, "Would you like to know my history, Miss Alice? It's quite an interesting story."

"No."

"Oh, the tale is an intriguing one. I shall tell you about it."

"Please don't."

"Once," the Mock Turtle began, paying no mind to anything Ciel had just said, "I was a real turtle. When I was little, I went to school in the sea. Our teacher was an old turtle whom we called 'tortoise'. I went to school everyday, where everyone was taught in the art of French, music, and washing."

"Washing?"

"However, I only took regular courses," the man sighed heavily before continuing, "Reeling and writhing, and then the different branches of arithmetic− ambition, distraction, uglification, and derision. I also learned mystery, ancient and modern, and seaography, then drawling, stretching, and fainting in coils. My schedule was quite diverse− I learned for ten hours on the first day, and nine on the second, and so on and so forth. That's why they're called lessons, you know, they lessen from day to day."

Hearing all of this, Ciel knew (most definitely) that it was just some stupid taradiddle or insane anecdote. Before he could interrupt, the Mock Turtle continued with, "You may not have lived under the sea, so perhaps you've never been introduced to a lobster?"

"I haven't."

"So then, you know not what a Lobster Quadrille is?"

The word 'quadrille' made Ciel tie a small knot in his throat. At the present moment he was attempting to keep up with the older man's steps, he didn't know why he had to _listen_ to a story about dancing (of all things) now.

"The dance was quite complicated," the Mock Turtle began, but the song was delightful:

_'Will you walk a little faster?' said a whiting to a snail._

_'There's a porpoise close behind us, and he's treading on my tail'._

_See how eagerly the lobsters and the turtles all advance! _

_They are waiting on the shingle_−_ will you come and join the dance? _

_Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance? _

_Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you join the dance?"_

The song continued, and eerie and slow it was. It took Ciel a moment to notice that that was the very song he was waltzing to, and it was being sung by the Knave of Hearts who stood near the Queen's throne. Following that, he noticed that the dance floor seemed to be practically empty, save for him and the Mock Turtle; and following _that_ he noticed the most crucial detail of it all: everyone was upside down.

With a small shot of panic, he noticed that he and the Mock Turtle were dancing on the ceiling, frightfully close to the large chandelier with all eyes on them. Throughout the Mock Turtle's storytelling, he hadn't even realized that the ceiling and the floor had swapped positions, and he began wondering how they were to get down.

As he looked around (though he knew he should have been looking at the floor to ensure he didn't step on the Turtle's feet) he caught sight of the White Rabbit, checking the time on his pocket watch critically. A scowl of discouragement splattered over his face as he glanced about, paying no attention to the main event everyone else watched. After closing the watch, the White Rabbit turned on his heel, dodged through the crowd and took his leave to someplace Ciel couldn't see beyond the shrouds of people.

Fortunately, William's voice came to a stop as he sung the last words, _"Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance? Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you join the dance?"_ and their steps also came to a stop.

Ciel took that opportunity to pull his hand away from the Mock Turtle's and rush off towards the crowd where the White Rabbit had disappeared to. But before he could even take a step, he fell off the ceiling, landing sharply on his knees, wincing.

He paid no mind to the short-lived injuries (though his cut/caterpillar bite continued to irritate him with a fierce pain) that he just acquired and chased after the black shadow, paying no mind to the Mock Turtle's calls after him.

As he ran, Ciel had two things on his radar: a door that might lead to the Queen's garden or the 'White Rabbit' who looked and acted like his butler.

He rushed past the suffocatingly-close crowds of people, ducked behind the courtiers who were offering around refreshments, and circled the dancers who paid him no mind. He found his way to a dark room on the opposite side of the ballroom, mentally persuading himself to enter it when he saw no one was inside and the comfy appearance of a four-poster bed.

Exhausted from the seemingly eternal waltz held previous, he stopped to catch his breath, rubbing his leg to assuage the pain. So engrossed in pacifying the horrible feeling, he almost didn't notice when a presence entered the room.

Starting, he jerked his head upwards, seeing the smirking face of the White Rabbit again.

"My, my, what do we have here?" he purred, a mixture of mischievousness and lust entering his voice. A sexy smirk was on his lips, and it proved to be foreboding as he began removing his gloves and taking small steps towards the other.

As he walked, he let the door sweep to a halt behind him, all of the light drained from the room as it closed and locked the party away outside. The White Rabbit licked his lips.

"Now, Miss Alice, please remove your stockings."


	17. This Place, Misunderstanding

"A-ah... St-stop."

"Don't worry, we're almost done here."

With a shiver, Ciel felt the cool trickle of liquid run down his thigh. He made a breathy moan as he bit back the pain in his lower body. He felt his hands press against the older man's chest, attempting to push him away albeit weakly.

Ciel's eyes had long since adjusted to the darkness, and because of this, he found himself glancing straight upwards at the man above him over and over. Each time he made out a very visible smirk thinning on the other's lips. _That sadist._

"I wouldn't think it would hurt this much," the older male replied. He then flicked his fingers near Ciel's upper leg, causing the boy to curse and shudder again at the touch. "I didn't mean to cause you so much pain. I'll be a bit more gentle."

"Just finish it! Ahh−"

Obeying the command, the black-haired male climbed down from the bed, ending his torture. He then set to work, straightening the creases out of his coat with a sigh. "I didn't think you would make such a fuss over baking soda and ice, Miss Alice. It was a procedure that needed to be applied to your caterpillar injury well before now."

Ciel also descended the bed, glaring at the other man. "You could have been more gentle."

"I apologize."

"Tch."

"The bite shouldn't bother you anymore," the male replied as he pulled his gloves back over his hands, starting with the left hand. Ciel watched his back whilst pulling back on his stockings, taking care not to brush against his now treated injury.

"Which way is it to the Queen's personal garden?" he questioned, not wanting to waste any more time. He glanced about the pitch-black room. From inside, the party's noises had seemed to cease completely, making it appear as if they were the only two in the entire palace.

"Actually, you can reach her garden from the balcony right over there." The other motioned towards a door in the furthest corner of the room that housed said balcony. Careful to watch his steps, Ciel groped his way over to the door, relieved when it gave way when he pushed against it after grabbing the knob.

It lead to an unlit room with walls made of stone and a large balcony structured in the center front. This room appeared to be some kind of huge closet for the Queen, considering the red-wooded armoire in the left corner. The room before must have been her bedroom...

Ciel glanced down from the balcony, and the first thing he saw was a river with red water. Nothing appeared to be _in_ the river, but it still didn't look welcoming in the least.

"And how do I get home from here?" Ciel asked, turning towards the male behind him. The black-clad male glanced downwards at him before smiling again, replying with, "You don't really intend to jump down there, do you? The river would swallow you up or the Queen's cards would catch and behead you." His voice wasn't one of worry, but it held more of a provoking tone that challenged Ciel in a way he didn't like.

Ciel only gazed at the other man's eyes, scrutinizing them.

_You are definitely my butler. _

"You shouldn't doubt your master, Sebastian," was all he said before drifting over towards the balcony. He threw one leg over the balustrade, then the other, sliding down the railing to the bottom. Both feet just barely grazed the grass's surface before he heard the soft bubbles and ripples of the river.

The water was more scarlet and bloody now than when he was on the balcony, but he paid it no mind as he looked right and left, searching for any sign of the Queen's cards.

Nothing.

Without wasting another second, he set to work, mentally mapping out his voyage, starting from when he finished crossing the red river. From the red river, he planned on going back to the door in the tree Grell had guided him through. And from there, he would retrace his steps from the tree into the forest, then the Tea Party area, then to Sebastian's supposed house, then to the Duchess's château, then through the bushes near Tweedledee and Tweedledum's territory, then through the mushroom and buttercup garden, then through the ocean of tea, and back to the door of the first room that he had fallen into.

However, his journey stopped there. He had fallen _down_ the rabbit's hole, and surely he knew no way of falling up. Maybe if he ate some of the cake that made him grow, he'd be able to bust a way out through the ceiling, or maybe if he drank the liquid that made him shrink, he'd find a hole and be able to slip through it, back into the field and then back into his house.

At this point, he had nothing in his arsenal that consisted of the _Eat Me_ cake or _Drink Me_ bottle. But maybe when he reached the mushroom garden, he'd be able to receive something from there that would help.

Ciel studied the river for a moment before placing one foot into the water, testing it's depth.

It was deep, but not too bad.

He then added the other foot to the river, wading through it as best he could. The liquid was as thin as water, and it made no stain of his perfectly white clothing, so Ciel decided it wasn't blood, much to his relief. He was half-way to the other side when a hand of stone grabbed his leg and pulled him under.

The water immediately filled his nose as he caught a small glimpse of a headless body, that appeared to be rotting, yanking him down towards the bottom. Obviously, he didn't make the trip down with it, for the 'White Rabbit' snatched Ciel up out of the river, holding him close to his chest.

"That's one of the bodies of the young women that the Queen beheaded," he replied nonchalantly, placing Ciel down. Ciel watched as the corpse was pulled down back into the red river by others that looked like it, and they all disappeared with shrill moans he knew would enter his nightmares.

He glowered at Sebastian, first using only his crepuscular-sapphire eye to scold him, then he added his voice.

"You're late, Sebastian. What took you so long to make your way down here?"

The other man looked at him perplexed, a frown danced across his face and he slowly shook his head unknowingly, muttering, "Sebastian?"

"Yes, that's what I've been calling you since we met! I order you to take me home!"

The confused look stayed on 'Sebastian's face as he stood to his full height, glancing down at Ciel. "Before now, we've never met."

"Liar. You're my butler. What's gotten into you? I know you haven't forgotten all about me or the contract."

"Contract?"

"In exchange for my revenge I'll give you my soul; isn't that what we agreed to?"

With a shot of hot anger, Ciel reached down and took 'Sebastian's left hand in his. This game had been going on for far too long and he was tired of it. All he wanted was to go home and have everything return to the way it had been.

Starting from the index finger, he ripped off the red-eyed man's glove, dropped it to the ground and turned around the man's hand, palm down. To his shock, there was nothing there; the telltale star-pentagram was nonexistent. Slightly panicked, he reached over and took up the man's other hand, pulling off that glove to receive the same result.

"But... you... and him..."

The voice trailed off into nothingness as he took a small step backwards to the river. He peered over towards the glass red waters, fingers brushing against his eyepatch before he pulled it off and dropped it onto the grass.

A blue eye that matched the other perfectly.

There was no sign of purple in his reflection of his face, and there was no star.

Speechless, he backed away from the river, leaving his eyepatch by the river's edge. He continued backtracking until he felt that once familiar feeling of a blade against his back. Again, it was a lance that threatened to puncture his back, and again, one of the Queen's cards stood behind him, holding it steady.

From behind the card, the Queen emerged, tapping her heart scepter against her thigh. "She was in Your Majesty's garden without permission," one of the cards announced, feeling rather proud of itself. The Queen, however, seemed appalled, and instantly pointed her heart scepter at Ciel, screaming, "Off with her head!"

He glanced about for the White Rabbit that had been with him only a moment ago, but saw he had been abandoned. And with a great deal of screaming, and fruitless fighting, Ciel was taken off to be executed.


	18. This Place, Trial

_'Beheaded by a woman who looks like my aunt__.' _For some reason Ciel found the thought slightly entertaining as he followed the cards up the stairs of the palace. The Queen lead all of them, a malicious smile on her lips as she tapped her heart scepter against her thigh. They turned a corner where she looked back and yelled, "Call for the headsman! There's another execution!" before she continued onwards, up the stairs towards the roof.

Their trip was stopped abruptly, however, when out of the shadows came a voice that said, "Your Highness, you wouldn't execute her without a trial, would you?"

Ciel was pleasantly surprised to see that the Duchess had returned to the palace and was now begging for his life, of all things. Maybe she was more like Elizabeth than what he had originally thought...

Said blonde emerged from the shadows, a sorrowful frown ironed on her face and her hands clasped to her chest.

"She should at least be granted a trial, shouldn't she? I mean, she is new to Wonderland," the last part was squeaked out, for the Duchess had seen the grave expression the Queen of Hearts carried. The Queen's red eyes flashed, but the Duchess continued to stand her ground, albeit trembling.

"Ugh, very well! But only a small trial. When it's over, off with her head!"

Ciel then found himself in another vast room, cornered by actual rose trees in the midst of bodies of both birds and animals. Amidst the mass, he spotted the three cards that had been painting the roses earlier that morning, all of the animals from the caucus-race, and even Tweedledee and Tweedledum.

The Queen took her seat upon her scarlet throne, crossing her legs and glaring down at all of the assembled creatures. When the Knave of Hearts joined her side, she barked at him to begin the trial, saying something along the lines of yearning for the sight of a blood jet.

With his usually impassive face, the Knave lifted a trumpet up to his lips, blowing loudly before announcing, "The trial will now commence!"

Ciel glanced at the jury-box and the twelve creatures sitting there, scribbling busily on slates. Among them was Abberline from earlier, whom was using an irritatingly squeaky pencil.

"The trial hasn't even started, what are they writing down?" he mumbled under his breath, not meaning for anyone to hear him. However, the Duchess seemed to have heard and replied with, "They're writing down their names; they want to make sure they don't forget them before the end of the trial."

"Stupid things," Ciel grumbled almost mutely, turning away from them. No sooner had he done this had each of the creatures begun writing 'Stupid things' on their slates.

"Read the accusation, if you must," the Queen groused. Promptly, William began to read the words printed across the parchment in his hand.

_"The Queen of Hearts,_

_Upon her throne,_

_Threw a party at dawn._

_She came to the garden,_

_From her red throne,_

_To see it encroached upon."_

"Call the first witness!" the Queen snapped, and the first witness (who was the March Hare) promptly appeared sipping a cup of tea, followed by the Mad Hatter and the Dormouse who were doing the same.

"What day was it for you when this all happened?" the Knave asked, adjusting his glasses further upon his nose. The look on his face bore no sign of interest or expression, almost as if he were in the middle of a very taxing chore. _Overtime, no doubt,_ Ciel thought.

"I reasoned it was the fourteenth of April."

"No, the fifteenth!" cackled the Hatter.

"No, it was the sixteenth," droned the Dormouse.

"Tch, only yesterday they were telling me it was March," Ciel deadpanned under his breath before he was hushed by the duck, whom was among the band of jurors. After that, each juror set to work scrawling down the three dates.

"Give your evidence," said the Queen, and she was only met with a blank stare and a head tilt from the March Hare. "Evidence?" he repeated, "I reasoned that the dates that I gave Your Majesty were enough to prove my innocence."

"The question made no sense from the beginning," Ciel interrupted, but he was quickly hushed by an eaglet.

When nothing more came from the March Hare's mouth, a little dodo mistook the silence as the ending of the trial and clapped its wings, but was quickly silenced by being shoved into a bag and sat on.

"Call in the next witness!" the Queen thundered, and the next witness was also promptly brought in. It was the Duchess's chef who entered the room, holding a pepper-box in her trembling hands. She quivered like water until she reached the platform and stood stock-still, almost as if _she_ were the one to be executed.

"Give your evidence," the Knave asked, adjusting his glasses again. But the poor chef stuttered and stammered so much she could barely be heard− rather, she couldn't be understood in the least. William decided to leave off that question, and instead asked, "Do you know anything about the Queen's personal garden?"

Still so scared she couldn't even speak, the chef only replied with, "Umm... pepper?"

It was at this point that the duck Ciel hated so much applauded, mistaking William's exasperated expression for that of the conclusion of the trial. But it was also silenced by being sat on, much to Ciel's sadistic joy.

Sighing exasperatedly, the Knave waved a hand, muttering, "Never mind, you're dismissed." Relieved beyond comparison, the chef high-tailed her way out of the courtroom and probably headed towards home to seek refuge in her pepper, Ciel thought.

"That seems to be enough," the Knave announced, turning towards the Queen, awaiting her response to it all. The Queen looked towards Ciel, eyes glittering with malice. "That seems to be the end of it. Now... for the sentence."

"Isn't there usually a verdict first, Your Highness?" William questioned, thinning an eyebrow as if challenging her, in his own impassive way.

"Sentence first; verdict afterwards!" the Queen snapped.

"I agree," said the voice of the headsmen, who removed his cloak right away. Ciel recognized the face immediately as that of Ash, and couldn't help but feel a surge of acidic anger bubble and froth in the pit of his stomach.

"I say that Alice here is guilty. Off with her head!"

Here the headsmen lunged from the corner of the room, soaring to the edges of the ceiling with feathered wings and an ax in the other hand. He turned towards Ciel, diving and just barely decapitating the boy's head clear off.

Instead, Ciel barreled to the ground, rolling over himself and fell out of his defendant's stand. This must of been the person the caucus-race animals refereed to as "she", even though now, Angela was clearly a male.

Ash rose higher now, eyes glowing completely white. With a shrill sounding scream and white light, the entire courtroom exploded, and one of the walls of the palace itself was blasted away with absolutely nothing left.

About half of the jurors flew out of the open wall, plummeting over the edge and onto a large stone balcony that bore a guillotine. Thrown by the momentum of the blast, Ciel was also thrown half-way across the courtroom and suffered the same fate as them.

For the second time on his entire journey, he felt the wind knocked out of him as he landed on the stone balcony, squeezing his eyes shut as the familiar throbbing pain washed over him again. By the time he reopened his eyes, the white male was before him, pointing the blade of his sword at his throat.

Before he could react, Ciel's arms were bound by two cards, and he was yanked over towards the guillotine. He caught a glimpse of the Queen watching from the edge of the open courtroom, her hair blowing in the night breeze, and a smirk upon her lips that made her look very much like the Madam Red that almost killed him that night.

Standing beside her, with two hands cupping her mouth in surprise and potential sorrow and heartache, was the Duchess, whom already had tears welling in her eyes.

It was an odd thing to think about at such a time, but it occurred to Ciel that Grell and William were still in Wonderland. Did that mean that the soul that they were to be taking with them was his? He seriously began pondering this as his head was placed under the lustrous guillotine blade, soon to be stained with his existence.

Like torpedos, various thoughts shot through his head, wondering how he had gotten into this kind of situation, and why had all of this happen to him. Why were people he _knew_ to be dead walking around and interacting with him? Why were the only people who recognized him were the shinigami? And why did that man look so much like Sebastian but it wasn't really him?

He felt a tiny tug on his heart as he closed his eyes, sending his mind into a boat that drifted into never-ending thoughts and possibilities. A light of movement shot across his closed eyes that he figured must have been the guillotine or the ax, and it was let down straight onto the board of wood, avoiding his head completely.

His eyes shot open, as he felt himself whisked off of the balcony and into the air. Glancing to his right, he saw the face of 'White Rabbit', smirking at him.

With sparkling eyes, the 'White Rabbit' managed to open his palm, revealing Ciel's sapphire ring and eyepatch, saying, "Do these belong to you?"

And Ciel, with a suppressed face of relief, took his ring, slipping it back onto his thumb, and pocketed the eyepatch in his apron.

The older male landed on the ground (still carrying Ciel in his arms) and dashed off towards the forests, and Ciel watched as the entire army of cards (as well as the Queen herself) pursued them at breakneck speed.

He ducked behind his carrier as a lance just narrowly grazed him, and reestablished his tight grip around the male's neck with a groan.

At this point, the two were surrounded by masses of trees, and the army of cards had come exceedingly faster.

The roar of a mechanical monster rent the skies as Grell leapt into the fray, swiping an entire column of marching cards in half. He instantly turned on his heel, grinning madly as he lunged at another column, fiercely hacking at them.

"Will, these opponents are no fun~. There's no masterpiece that can become of paper cards," he called, disappointed when he didn't see the telltale liquid of human life spool from the cards. Will, who had caught up just then, adjusted his glasses once more, only replying with a, "Just do your job, Grell Sutcliff."

The two continued to hack and chop through the card army as the two sped farther and farther away. Ciel was never really a curious person, but he found himself craning his neck this way and that as he tried to view what happened to the Queen of Hearts.

His attempts were futile, and he was forced to stop trying when a presence appeared behind him. Turning his head a trifle, Ciel saw Ash blocking the path, holding his sword tightly, his wings looking ethereal against the night sky.

Ash said nothing, and instead lunged at them with his sword like he had before. Of course, the White Rabbit avoided the attack, but what he didn't expect was for Ciel to relinquish his grip and tumble to the ground.

Ciel literally hit the ground running, and at quite a fast speed, too. He ran into the forest, refusing to look back or stop.

He wanted to go home, and he wasn't going to play any more games, partake in any more parties, or guess at any more riddles.

Wonderland had reached its goal of confusing him and mixing his memories so much that he didn't try to explain or decipher or study anything anymore. He wanted to go home more than anything else.

He could hear the 'White Rabbit' call after him in the distance, but he didn't respond, nor did he look back. A flood of other names entered his mind and ears: 'Ciel', 'Tiny', 'Lord Phantomhive', 'Earl', 'Young Master', all of these titles and nicknames belonged to him.

_"Young Master! ... Young Master!... _Young Master!... Young Master!"

And then Ciel awoke.


	19. This Place, A Dream

Ciel shot up and was pleasantly surprised to see he was in the bed of his own room. The sky appeared dark outside, and the smell of cooked vegetables and meat drifted from downstairs, alerting his mental clock that it must be dinnertime. On the right side of his bed, was his butler, looking surprised to see his master so flustered.

"What... happened?" Ciel trailed off, seeing that his pale blue costume had been replaced with his white nightshirt. His stockings, key necklace, bow, and nailpolish were also absent on his body. As he spoke, he searched around himself, looking for at least one of the few items that he had had on his adventure.

"You fell asleep during the lesson. I decided that it would be best to put you to bed. Shall I bring dinner up?" Sebastian replied, smiling as he set to work flattening the creases in the blanket with his gloved hand. He stopped short when he felt a pair of eyes on him, and saw Ciel inspecting him.

"Young Master?"

Almost instantly, Sebastian was verbally assaulted with questions, "What happened to the Queen of Hearts? And Grell, and the Duchess? Where did they go? How did I get home? What about the rabbit's hole?"

He received a long, hard stare from Sebastian once more before Ciel bent over, stroking the top of his butler's hair, mumbling, "There are no rabbit ears..."

It took the demon only a moment to connect the puzzle of Ciel's babbling, replying with, "It was all a dream, Young Master."

"Hmm?"

"A dream that sounds very much like the story of Alice in Wonderland."

"_Alice in Wonderland_?" Ciel's eyes sparkled at the familiar names.

"Yes. It's a book by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, more commonly known as Lewis Carroll. The Queen herself quite enjoys the book very much. I would advice the Young Master to read it, but he has such a busy schedule as it is, I don't see how he could possibly find the time." There was a certain undertone of sarcasm in the butler's voice, and one could say that he was hinting, 'you have no time to be reading fantasy books when you can't even stay awake in class'.

As he spoke, Ciel trailed his fingers against his bare leg to see a small reddish-pink bruise in the same area where he had gotten bitten and cut. He caught Sebastian's arm before the male could leave the room, saying, "What about my injury? If it was all a dream, why do I have a bruise?"

"Ahh, the Young Master fell out of his chair when he fell asleep and scraped his leg against the wood of his desk. I treated the injury as soon as I could," Sebastian replied with a slight trickle of amusment in his voice.

That seemed to be the end of it all.

Ciel had only been asleep for eleven hours, he had fallen out of his desk chair, and he had never even left his own home. With a long sigh, he eased his back onto the pillow, placing a hand on his head. "I'll eat dinner here tonight," he grumbled, closing his eyes to punctuate the order.

Bowing, his butler turned on his heel, clicking open his silver pocket watch and murmuring to himself, "It's getting so late..."

Tired-eyed, Ciel glanced towards the door and Sebastian's retreating form, shocked to see two furry rabbit ears and a small rabbit tail.

* * *

And there's the last chapter. I apologize for the barrage of chapters over the past week(s). I was trying to finish the story before the OVA premieres tomorrow so people won't be irritated by the differences if they read this fic and then watch the special.

Thanks to everyone who read till the end! And a special thanks to all who left reviews, put the story on alerts, faved, etc. I appreciate it a lot for my first real Kuroshitsuji fanfic.

I hope that you might read some of my future fics if you find them interesting. I'm currently planning a new story that will be Alois-centered. If it tickles your fancy, I hope that you will enjoy it when it's posted. ;D

* * *

_"I'm just one hell of a white rabbit."_


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